


Lost in Translation

by ms_superwhoavengelockgermany06



Category: Glee
Genre: AU: BDSM, Baby!Kurt, Bullying, Diapers, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Infantilism, M/M, More tags will be added later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-28
Updated: 2015-07-27
Packaged: 2018-01-17 08:28:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 22,008
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1380850
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ms_superwhoavengelockgermany06/pseuds/ms_superwhoavengelockgermany06
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After cheating on his first placement test, Kurt must take another to prove he is a standard sub. When the results come back and Kurt differentiates as a Little, things clear up and Kurt is happier. Then things take devastating turn.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The testing center was intimidating from the outside. Even though it was early June, the trees were bare and skeletal, and the dark red bricks of the building were dusty and covered with moss spots. The windows were blackened out, which, to Kurt, was the most terrifying trait of the aged building. Kurt clung to his father's side.

"I don't want to do this, Dad! I already took the test and it said I am a standard sub." Kurt said. 

"Humor me, kiddo. Maybe I'm just being paranoid." Burt said, pushing Kurt gently towards the front doors. 

Kurt sighed, accepting his completely unfair fate. He opened one of the double doors and walked through, clutching Burt's hand like a lifeline. It was Burt's turn to sigh. This was why Kurt needed to retake the test. He wasn't acting like a standard sub - he was clingy and cuddly and he had temper tantrums like nobody's business. Burt didn't mind Kurt wanting to cuddle while he and Finn watched football or his little guy sucking his thumb - he minded that Kurt wouldn't tell him that he knew damn good and well that he was a Little. His boy was smart, but he couldn't lie worth a damn. After walking along the hallway for a few minutes, the duo stopped in front of a door christened with a simple plaque the read 'Dr. Scott Smith.' Burt knocked a few times, chuckling slightly when Kurt hid behind him. The door opened to reveal a tall blonde man in his early thirties. 

"You must be Dr. Smith." Burt said, sticking out a hand. 

"Yes sir. You must be Mr. Hummel." Dr. Smith said with a smile, taking Burt's hand and giving it a firm shake. 

"Yep. I have Kurt with me, but he's hiding at the moment." 

Dr. Smith smiled. "That's alright. The little guys are always scared at first. Kurt, do you want to come play?" 

Kurt scowled and looked at the doctor. "I'm not a baby - don't treat me like one." He snapped. 

Burt smiled softly and kissed Kurt's forehead. "You'll be fine, Kurt. I'll be back at one to pick you up, okay? Be good." He said. 

"As always." 

With that, Burt walked away, leaving Kurt and Dr. Smith alone for the morning. Dr. Smith smiled and invited Kurt into his office. Kurt sat in the chair in front of Dr. Smith's desk, fidgeting uncomfortably. Dr. Smith leaned against the desk, flipping through a file. 

"Dr. Smith, when do we start the test?" Kurt asked, pulling his supplies out of his messenger bag. 

"You can call me Scott, Kurt, and it won't be a written test. This is a special kind of test." Scott said. 

"What do you mean?" 

"I'm going ask you some questions first, okay? I want you to answer them honestly for me." 

Kurt nodded. "Okay." 

Scott launched into a flurry of questions, Kurt answering them so quickly he barely knew what he was saying. The questions made Kurt's head spin, but he answered each and every one because he actually kind of liked Scott. Finally, Scott stopped asking questions and started writing in the file. Kurt picked at the hem of his shirt, worried that maybe Scott was putting down something unsavory in his file. He whimpered unconsciously. 

"Did I do something wrong?" Kurt asked softly. 

"Oh, no. You did wonderful, Kurt. We're going to move to another room now. Let's go." Scott said, leading Kurt to another room. 

When Scott opened the door, Kurt peeked inside. Against his will, Kurt's face lit up. The room was bright and colorful, filled with toys that looked like a lot of fun. Kurt quickly schooled his expression and turned to Scott. 

"Why are we here? This room is for Littles." Kurt said, feigning disgust. 

"I know. Its just a necessary part of the test. I'm going to leave you in here for a little bit, okay? Just do what feels natural." Scott instructed. 

True to his word, Scott disappeared, leaving Kurt alone in the playroom. Kurt sat in the corner, refusing to let himself play with anything, even if he really wanted to. He wasn't a Little. Littles were weak and shameful in Kurt's family - if he had to be a sub, he wasn't going to be a Little. He crossed his arms and put on a determined face. 

Kurt failed. He lasted about five minutes before he went to a tub of soft blocks and started to build with them and giggle at the different sounds they made. They kept him busy for about half an hour before he moved on to a little table with a bunch of buttons that lit up and made music play. After an hour, Kurt began to rub his eyes tiredly, yawning. He figured it was around ten - he usually napped in his ten A.M. class at school. With another yawn, he stood and stretched, startling when the door opened and Scott peaked in. 

"Tired?" Scott teased lightly. 

Kurt shook his head stubbornly. "Just really bored." 

"Well, I figured you would like a snack. You want to come to the cafeteria with me?" 

Kurt nodded and again followed Scott through the halls until they got to the cafeteria. Scott pointed to a chair and Kurt sat, squirming uncomfortably as he looked at what was set out. A bottle, a sippy cup, and a regular glass next to a plate with a sliced banana. Kurt frowned and folded his hands in his lap defiantly. 

"Pick one. The one you really want to use." Scott said. 

Kurt bit his lip, eyes filling with tears. "I can pick any of them?" He asked. 

"Whichever one you prefer." 

Kurt was at a loss. He hated lying - it made him feel awful. But he didn't want to be classified as a Little. Against better judgement, he picked up the bottle and started to nurse, tears pricking his eyes. He was such a disgrace. Scott smiled sympathetically. 

"Its nothing to be ashamed of, Kurt. Its okay to be a Little. There's nothing bad or wrong about it. You're a very good boy." Scott cooed. 

Kurt whimpered, humiliated. He hated his lack of willpower. He should have been able to control his wants and needs. His dad did not need the stress of having a gay Little in the great bigot state of Ohio. Scott patted Kurt's shoulder as Kurt finished drinking. 

"Kurt, we're going to go back to my office. How are you feeling?" Scott asked. 

"I want my Daddy." Kurt whispered. 

"What was that?" 

"Nothing!" 

Kurt was a difficult case, one of the most challenging Scott had ever had. Kurt seemed to have some sort of severe psychological fear of being a Little. Scott sat with Kurt at his desk and pulled out some paper and crayons, passing them to Kurt. 

"Kurt, I want you to draw me a few pictures of how you feel inside. Whatever you're feeling or thinking." Scott said. 

"But my Daddy's going to be here soon." Kurt protested. 

"That's okay, Kurt. You and I are going to talk to your Daddy together." 

Kurt accepted the answer and started to color. Scott noticed the odd amounts of black and gray in Kurt's pictures. Right at one, a knock on the door pulled Scott from his thoughts. Burt Hummel looked in, his face displaying his worry. Scott motioned for him to come in. Burt did so and closed the door softly behind him. 

"Kurt, tell me about this picture. What is it?" Scott asked. 

"How I feel all the time." Kurt answered simply. 

"And how do you feel all the time?" 

Kurt bit his lip. "Mixed up. Sad. Really angry. I can't-I don't want to be a Little. I mean, I want to be a Little, but I don't want to make anyone mad or disappoint me Daddy." 

"Why would you disappoint me, Kurt? I'd love you no matter what. Anyone who has told you otherwise is lying." Burt blurted, make Kurt turn around. 

"I was scared. You love Finn and he's a Daddy and he's big and strong and I cheated on my last test so I wouldn't be classified as a Little because I thought you would be angry and I-I-" Kurt began to cry. 

Burt picked Kurt up, cradling him gently. Scott smiled softly as Burt bounced Kurt carefully. 

"I don't mind you being a Little, Kurt. I like having my little Ace back. You must be a sleepy little boy, huh? Let's go home." Burt whispered. 

Scott walked out with the duo, holding open the doors. 

"Thanks, Doc. I couldn't stand to see him so upset anymore." Burt said. 

"No problem. I'd make sure to reassure him about his status for these first few months." Scott said. 

"Will do." 

Burt finished the trek out to his trek and buckled Kurt into his new carseat. Burt smiled when Kurt snuffled lightly in his sleep. He felt guilty for not taking Kurt sooner. Placing one more kiss on Kurt's forehead, he hoped in the front seat and headed home for the first evening with little Kurt.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the great reviews, everyone. I really appreciate them. Quick question for you all - how would you feel about this being a Klainofsky story?

It was the official first day with little Kurt in the house, and Finn was going crazy. Kurt wanted to play, and without any toys to keep his occupied, he had turned to Finn for entertainment. Carole had found it cute, the way Kurt wanted to play with his soon to be big brother, but Finn was less amused when he had Kurt plastered to his side while he played Halo. Finn wondered how out of every preparation Burt had made, he had forgotten toys.

"Kurt, I'm busy. Go, uh, take a nap or something." Finn said absently. 

"Is nap time?" Kurt asked Carole curiously. 

Carole chuckled. "Not until one, kiddo. We haven't even had lunch yet. Brother's being silly." She said, glaring at Finn.

"Silly Finn!" 

"Mom, can't you play with him? " Finn asked. 

"Come on, Finn. Its nice outside. Maybe you two can run through the sprinkler. Kurt wants to play with his big brother." Carole said. 

"Sprinkler? Please, Finn?" Kurt begged. 

Finn sighed. "Fine. Come on, Kurt. Let's get your trunks on." He said, picking Kurt up and carrying him to his room. 

****

Finn watched Kurt toddle through the sprinkler happily, smiling softly. Kurt was so interested in water, just like a real baby. Kurt ran up to Finn, giggling and soaking wet.

"Play, Finn." Kurt said, tugging on Finn's hands. 

"I'm good, K. You go play." Finn said, giving a small push of encouragement. 

Kurt's lip wobbled. "You said you would play with me. Its not fair if you don't." 

"I'm out here, aren't I? Go play. You've been bugging me all morning to play." 

"But I want you to play too! Please, big brother? Please, please, please?" 

Before Finn could say something he would regret, Carole walked out. "Boys, its time for - Finn Hudson, why is the baby crying? What did you do?" Carole scolded. 

Kurt made grabby hands at Carole until the woman picked him up. He hid his face in he shoulder. He hadn't meant to make Finn mad - he just wanted to play. Finn rolled his eyes. 

"He was being annoying and I told him to go play. I didn't do anything." Finn said innocently. 

"You promised to play with me!" Kurt wailed. 

Carole sighed. "No fighting. Let's eat some lunch and then its time for all good little boys to take a nap." She said. 

Finn knew better than to argue with his mother, walking inside quietly as she carried Kurt. Kurt's face was still hidden from view as Carole buckled him into his highchair. Kurt whimpered, grabbing for Carole again. Carole ruffled his hair with a chuckle. 

"Its definitely lunch and nap for you, bean." She said. 

Kurt whined. "Not a baby. I don't need a nap!" He argued. 

"Kurt, I don't understand whine. Whiny babies need extra napping time." 

"I'm not a baby! I'm not, I'm not, I'm not! Stupid test, stupid highchair, stupid-" 

Kurt was cut off when a bottle nipple was shoved into his mouth by Finn, who looked exasperated with Kurt's tantrum. Kurt calmed as he nursed the bottle of apple juice with Finn patting his head. Finn smiled. 

"Was that it? You were just thirsty?" Finn cooed. 

"I'm sorry I annoyed you, Finn." Kurt said softly. 

"You weren't bad, K. I was mean and I'm sorry. I'll play with you tomorrow, promise." 

Kurt nodded and turned his attention to Carole as she set a plate on his tray. He looked at the peanut butter and jelly sandwich, apple slices, and carrot sticks and made a face. He couldn't eat that - it had too much fat and sugar. Kurt pouted as Carole cut the sandwich into tiny pieces. Kurt bit his lip. Carole had used blackberry jelly, his favorite. Kurt had never wanted to eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich so much in his life. 

"Why are you giving me icky faces, Kurt? You like PB&J." Carole said. 

"I can't eat it. It has lots of fat and calories-" Kurt babbled. 

"Both things you sorely need, bean. You're too skinny. If you finish it all, I might be able to find a lemon yogurt in the fridge for you." 

Kurt nodded and ate his sandwich, giggling as he watched Finn eat like he was starving. After eating his sandwich and carrot sticks, Kurt felt his eyes start to droop. He whined and rubbed his eyes aggressively, squirming uncomfortably when he noticed that his diaper was wet. Carole smiled sympathetically and got Kurt out of his highchair. Kurt clung to her like a little koala and let her carry him to his nursery. Carole laid Kurt on the changing table, grabbing a fresh diaper and onesie to get Kurt ready for his nap. Kurt batted at Carole's hands when she tried to change his diaper. 

"I'm not wet. Don't need a new diaper." Kurt said. 

"Your diaper is wet from the sprinkler and I think you had a little accident. Its okay, bean. Nothing we can't fix." Carole cooed, ridding Kurt of his soiled diaper. 

Kurt whimpered. He felt so dirty and he felt bad for Carole because she had to clean him up. Carole gently wiped Kurt's bottom and powdered him before fastening a new diaper on his bottom. She quickly got him dressed in a pale yellow onesie with a ladybug on it and picked him up again, patting his bottom until Kurt calmed down a little. Kurt snuggled into Carole's chest tiredly, debating whether or not to suck his thumb. Placing a kiss on Kurt's forehead, Carole laid him in his crib, carefully tucking the baby in. 

"Sorry I had accident. Was bad. No more." Kurt said groggily. 

"You are not bad, Kurt. Babies have accidents and that's why they have Daddies and Mommies to take care of them and love them. I love you, bean. Now, its nap time." Carole said, slipping a pacifier into Kurt's mouth. 

Kurt was out like a light before Carole even left the room, giving Carole and Finn some free time. Well, mainly Finn some free time. He was ready to blow stuff up on Halo. 

****

Burt walked through the door at four thirty to find Kurt in the corner crying. He raised an eyebrow and looked to Carole, who was reading with a nervous expression. Burt couldn't believe Kurt had already gotten in trouble - he had been smiles and sunshine when he left for work. Kurt continued to sob in the corner and Carole put her book down.

"Kurt, sweetie, please come out. Daddy's home." Carole begged. 

Burt was surprised when Kurt didn't come. Both he and Carole were Doms - they were used to Kurt listening to them without hesitation. 

"Are you in trouble? Did Carole put you there?" Burt asked. 

Kurt shook his head. "I was bad, though." He whispered. 

"What did you do?" 

Kurt broke into noisy sobs again. Burt turned to Carole, who had tears in her eyes. She looked worried. "What did he do? I feel like he didn't do anything bad." Burt said. 

"He didn't. He woke up from his nap and he was really fussy because his tummy was hurting and he hid behind the recliner to do his business in his diaper. He finished and he cried and cried as I changed him and when I brought him back to the living room, he went to the corner. He's been sitting there since two thirty. I can't get him to come out." Carole said in a rush. 

Burt sighed. "He's embarrassed. He's never had us change his messy diapers before. He thinks he's in trouble. I'll fix it, love." 

Carole nodded and went into the kitchen to give Burt and Kurt some privacy. Burt squatted in the corner beside Kurt, turning the boy to face him. 

"Kurt, do you want to rock in the chair in your nursery?" Burt asked softly. 

Kurt shook his head and turned back to the corner. He knew bad boys didn't get cuddles in the rocking chair. Kurt was really confused by how calm and nice Burt was. With a sigh, Burt picked Kurt up and started carrying him to the nursery, knowing the boy wouldn't go willingly. Kurt struggled a little in Burt's arms, whining in protest until Burt sat in the rocking chair and began to rock gently, holding Kurt close. 

"Now, what has you all upset and thinking that you're naughty?" Burt asked. 

Kurt's lip wobbled. "I-I m-messed in my p-pants." Kurt hiccuped. 

Burt smiled sympathetically. "Oh, Ace, having messy pants isn't bad. You're a baby, Kurt, and babies need diapers. You're doing exactly what you're supposed to. You're a good boy." 

"Annoyed Finn." 

"You annoyed Finn?" Burt raised an eyebrow at the sudden subject change. 

Kurt bit his lip. "I was bored and I wanted to play. Finn didn't want to and I kept asking." 

Burt chuckled. "Well, kiddo, that's partially my fault. You don't have any toys and I was thinking we could go fix that tonight." 

Kurt looked at Burt with wide eyes. "Really?" 

"Really. Would you like that?" 

Kurt nodded excitedly, not noticing Carole come down the stairs. She smiled as Kurt happily hugged Burt. Burt looked at Carole and smiled. 

"Hey. I fixed the baby." Burt said, tickling Kurt's tummy. 

"I see that. Are you my happy boy again?" Carole cooed. 

"Uh huh. Daddy says I'm a good boy." Kurt said proudly. 

"Well, Daddy's a smart man, isn't he?" 

Carole handed Kurt a bottle of water, which he immediately stuck in his mouth. As he nursed, Carole and Burt talked about their day. Kurt happy snuggled into Burt and fiddled with the buttons on his shirt. Maybe being a Little wasn't all bad. Kurt sighed a little - he had his entire life to figure that out, but right now, he was content to cuddle.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks so much for the awesome reviews and the kudos! You guys rock!

Rachel Berry was not a happy camper. She couldn't believe Finn had brought that big, dumb baby on their playdate. She let out an annoyed 'humph,' looking at Kurt sitting in the carseat next to hers. She hadn't even known that Kurt was a Little! But here he was, sucking on his pacifier, blanket clutched in his hands, giggling along with the kid's CD Finn had on. Rachel kicked Finn's seat. Stupid Kurt was going to ruin their fun day at the park.

"No kicking, Rachel. We don't want to set a bad example for Kurt, do we? You're bigger than him." Finn chastised. 

"Why do we even hafta play wif him?" Rachel asked, annoyed. 

"Because its going to be lots of fun to be friends with Kurt and I'm babysitting him today, sweetheart. I know you don't know him very well, but he's nice." 

"He's a big baby, Finn! I don't wanna play wif him and he has messy pants and he's gross!" 

"Rachel, be nice," Finn heard a small whimper from a now upset Kurt, "Apologize for hurting Kurt's feelings." 

Rachel rolled her eyes. "Sorry, Kurt. Its not your fault you're a big baby." 

"Rachel." Finn warned. 

"Fine. I'm sorry, Kurt." 

Kurt nodded, suddenly interested in the hedgehog on his blanky. Finn had said Rachel was nice and that she liked musicals. So far, she was just like that mean guy who pushed him out of the swing at the park a few weeks ago. Kurt rubbed the silky side of his blanket against his nose for comfort. Maybe there would be nicer Littles at the park today. 

The park was busy today, filled with happy screeches from children and Littles at play. Rachel got herself out of the car as Finn fiddled with Kurt's buckles. Kurt wiggled slightly, trying to help loosen the straps to no avail. Finally, Finn got him out and put him on his hip, grabbing Rachel's hand before heading towards the playground. Rachel went straight for a group of girls playing dolls while Kurt looked around curiously. The had put a new slide in that looked like fun, but it was really high - too scary for Kurt's taste. Finn smiled at him. 

"Where do you want to go, Kurtie?" Finn asked. 

"Swing?" Kurt asked. 

"You don't want to check out that cool new slide?" 

Kurt shook his head frantically. "No. Scary." 

Finn laughed a little. "Swings it is." 

Finn set Kurt down, allowing the boy to toddle to the swing set. Kurt stopped at a swing, waiting for Finn to lift him and settle him into the large seat. It was a baby swing - Burt had said Kurt was too little for a big kid swing. Kurt was perfectly fine with that; the big kid swings were easy to fall out of. Finn put Kurt in the swing and started to push him slowly. 

"Faster, brudder?" Kurt asked. 

"Alright. Get ready for takeoff!" Finn yelled, pushing Kurt higher. 

Kurt let out a high pitched squeal of joy, giggling as Finn pushed him higher and higher. Finn stopped pushing Kurt after a while, distracted by someone calling his name. 

"Finn! Yo, Finn!" A voice called. 

None other than Dave Karofsky jogged over, holding the hands of two Littles. Kurt waved - he remembered Dave. He was sweet to him sophomore year after he apologized for bullying him. Finn fist bumped Dave and greeted the two strange Littles. They looked alike - both girls had the same cocoa colored skin and curly black hair in pigtails. They wore matching red overalls with frilly white shirts and white tennis shoes. Kurt looked between them, whimpering and making grabby hands at Finn. Finn lifted Kurt up, patting his bottom gently. 

"Hey, Kurt. Are you being shy today?" Dave teased. 

"He gets shy around new people. He doesn't have any little guys to play with yet." Finn said. 

"Yeah, I get it. He's only been little for about a month, right?" 

"Yep, and I know a little boy who needs a dry diaper." 

Kurt's cheeks flamed as he hid his face in Finn's shoulder. He hated people knowing that he had wet. Finn carried Kurt to a bench, leaving Dave with his two charges. He looked at the two girls. 

"Jessica, Jamie, why don't you go play? I'll be right over there with Finn." Dave said. 

"Okay!" Jessica and Jamie chimed 

The twins ran off as Dave headed towards the bench being occupied by Kurt and Finn. Finn was pulling up Kurt's shorts when Dave sat down. Kurt hid his face again. He did not want Dave to see him being changed. Dave grinned and tickled Kurt's still exposed tummy, making the embarrassed baby giggle. 

"Come here, munchkin. How's my favorite baby today?" Dave asked, putting Kurt in his lap. 

"Wanna play." Kurt said softly. 

"I think we can arrange that. Is he okay to play by himself?" 

"As long as we're watching, he should be fine." Finn said. 

Dave smiled at Kurt and set the little boy down, watching him toddle towards the sandbox. Once Kurt was playing happily, building little sandcastles as he giggled. Dave smiled softly. That was going to be his Little someday. He had been crushing on Kurt since eighth grade and Kurt apparently liked him enough to forgive him for the bullying, so Dave had been trying to be a great friend. Baby Kurt adored him - Dave was certain that there could be something between them. Rachel ran up to Finn, bouncing in place as she stood before him. Finn laughed at Rachel's miserable expression. 

"What's the matter, Rachel?" Finn asked. 

"I hafta go potty." She stage whispered. 

"Let's go then - shit, I need to get Kurt. Kurt, come-" 

"I've got him, Hudson. Go take care of Rachel." Dave said. 

"You're a lifesaver, dude. I'll be right back." 

Finn grabbed Rachel's hand and they ran off to the bathroom. Dave searched for Kurt - honestly, the baby never ventured far from an adult - and found him still playing in the sandbox. Dave sighed. Kurt was such a good boy. Dave's phone went off and he answered, positive that Kurt would be fine for just a minute without constant supervision. 

The sandbox was great! The big kids didn't bother Kurt because they were on the jungle gym and he was still able to see Dave, which meant he was safe. It was a win-win. Kurt was putting some wildflowers he had picked on his castle when he suddenly got a face full of sand. He sputtered unhappily and wiped at his eyes. When he had all the sand cleared away, he looked up and came face to face with a boy in leather pants and tight black shirt. Kurt whimpered - it was one of those scary Masters, and looked none to happy with Kurt. 

"Oh, look, the little freak is crying. I think we hurt his feelings by crushing his shitty little sandcastle." The boy teased. 

"Oh no! Maybe he needs his pedophile to change him." Sneered a girl with a thick leather collar around her neck. 

"Beat it, kid. Me and my bitch have a date with this sandbox and some condoms." 

"But I'm playing..." Kurt stood, eyes shimmering with hope, "Do you want to play? We can build together." 

The boy snorted. "How stupid are you Littles? I said beat it." 

The boy shoved Kurt roughly, making the dainty brunette land on the hard concrete. Kurt hiccuped, looking at his now scraped and stinging knees. The Master laughed cruelly as Kurt's lip wobbled, but promptly stopped when Kurt began to wail. The boy freaked out. 

"Dude, calm down, its not that bad. Come on, don't be such a ba- don't be so much of a fucking baby, jeez." The boy barked. 

Kurt kept wailing. "DAAAAAAAAAVE!" Kurt screamed. 

"Shit! Come on, Connie, let's-" 

"Kurt? What happened? Oh, poor baby, you got boo-boos," Dave cooed before glaring at the Master and his Slave, "Did you do this?" 

"I don't have to answer to a freak and his Daddy." The boy sneered. 

"You think its fun to pick on babies who can't defend themselves? If you want a fight, pick it with someone your own size." 

"Like who? You?" 

Settling Kurt on his hip, Dave stood to his full height. "Yeah, like me." 

The Master growled, but turned and walked away. The odds didn't look great for him and he didn't want to have his ass kicked in front of his Slave. Once the couple was gone, Dave carried Kurt back to the picnic table and set him down gently before pulling a first aid kit out of his backpack. Kurt hissed as Dave dabbed at his scrapes with an antiseptic wipe and picked Disney princess band-aids when offered to dress the ugly wounds. Dave smiled sympathetically and kissed Kurt's forehead. 

"I'm so sorry, Kurt. I should have been paying attention. Now your little knees are all scraped up." Dave apologized. 

"Kiss better, Dave." Kurt whimpered. 

Dave kissed each knee before picking Kurt up and letting him rest his head on his shoulder. Kurt put his thumb in his mouth, smiling contently. 

"Would you like an ice cream, Kurt? For being a big, brave boy while I dressed your cuts?" Dave asked. 

"Strawberry?" Kurt asked around his thumb. 

"Sure. Jamie! Jessica! Come here, please!" 

The two girls ran up and Dave took Jessica's hand and let Jamie hold on to his belt loop and the quartet headed towards the ice cream man. 

****

Finn had somehow ended up with Dave at his house watching Kurt as he took Rachel on a date that was just the two of them. He didn't know Dave very well, but he knew one thing - Dave was a Daddy, one that seemed to like Kurt a lot. If Finn hadn't known that Dave was straight, he would have thought that Dave wanted to be Kurt's Daddy. However great Finn thought it was that Dave offered to babysit, though, Burt and Carole weren't _nearly_ as pleased. He figured that out as soon as he walked through the door.

"Finn Gerard Hudson, where the hell have you been?!" Carole barked. 

"Well, uh, I wanted to make it up to Rachel, y'know for bringing Kurt on our date-" Finn stammered. 

"Why didn't you call? We don't know anything about the boy you left Kurt with! What if he tried to hurt Kurt?" Burt ranted. 

"He wouldn't have hurt Kurt. He played with Kurt at the park and I know Dave from school." 

"We don't know him, though, Finn. And sure, nothing happened, but something could have. He's going to be your baby brother soon, Finn. He looks up to you and trusts you." 

"I don't see what the big deal is. I'll call next time, okay? I had to make it up to Rachel." 

"Well, I hope it was worth it, because you're grounded until further notice. No XBox, no seeing Rachel, no TV. Not until you can prove that you can be responsible." Carole said. 

"Come on, Mom! This isn't fair! Kurt's fine, isn't he?" 

"I'm with Carole, buddy. You gotta be responsible. You're going to be a Daddy soon. You have to learn to be responsible for taking care of Littles." Burt said. 

"Whatever. I'm going to go to bed." 

Finn stormed to his and Kurt's shared room and flung the door open. He was surprised that it didn't wake Kurt, who was sleeping in his crib soundly. Finn felt like punching something - preferably Kurt - out of rage. Instead, he ripped one of Kurt's Wicked posters off the wall and pushed all of Kurt's stupid storybooks off the shelf. Kurt was fine! Dave was a good guy, and Kurt adored him. Finn really wasn't seeing the problem. Finn collapsed onto his bed and groaned. 

"Brudder?" Kurt mumbled in his sleep. 

Finn looked over and his anger softened. It was hard to be mad at such a cute little boy. Finn sighed. He still liked Kurt better as standard Sub


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! I've decided against Klainofsky, but Dave will still be a big part of the story and Kurt's life, as seen last chapter. Oh, and if there is anything you'd like to see in this story, leave a comment and I'll try to fit it in. Thanks again, everyone!

Kurt was happily eating banana slices and coloring when Burt suddenly picked him up. Squirming unhappily, Kurt tried to escape his father's hold. He had just woken up from his nap - he was certain that it wasn't time for another nap yet. Despite being upset about not being able to continue coloring his fabulous unicorn, Kurt squealed as Burt tossed him over his shoulder.

"Is nap time again?" Kurt asked through a fit of giggles. 

"Nope. Its bath time, Ace. We're going to meet Finn's teachers and your teachers. Does that sound fun?" Burt asked. 

"Don't like school." 

"Why not? You're gonna have lots of fun and make new friends." 

"No one likes me." 

"That's not true. Finn likes you, and that other guy, Dave, he likes you a lot. And you'll be in Little classes, so you'll meet new kids like you. You're going to be just fine, Kurt." 

"Promise? Big promise?" 

"The biggest promise. You wanna wear Lightning McQueen or ducklings?" 

"Duckies! Duckies!" 

Kurt slapped a hand over his mouth. His speech hadn't regressed as much as it should have, but that last sentence was the closest it had gotten to Little speak. Kurt slipped his thumb into his mouth and hid his face in Burt's neck. Burt picked out the specified outfit and carried Kurt to the bathroom. Setting the boy down on the closed toilet seat, Burt began drawing the bath, putting a liberal amount of bubble bath in the warm water. Once the bath was ready, Burt stripped Kurt of his onesie and diaper and set him in the water, laughing when Kurt squealed in delight at the bubbles. He started bathing Kurt, being sure to use the proper soap for Kurt's body and face. Washing Kurt's hair was a little more difficult. They had changed his products, but the process was still rigorous and had to be exact. Burt put a few toys in the tub for Kurt and began washing his hair as he became distracted by the rubber ducks. It was surprisingly simple to wash Kurt up when he was occupied, so about five minutes later, Burt lifted Kurt out of the water and wrapped him in a towel, carrying him to his nursery. 

Finn shared a room with Kurt, which meant half the room was a nursery, and the other half looked like it belonged to a teenage boy. Finn didn't mind so much - Kurt's side was always immaculate - but he did mind the fact that Carole and Burt were coming in and out at all hours. Kurt constantly needed diaper changes and naps and quiet time and night feedings, so Burt and Carole would come in without warning to take care of Kurt. That eventually got to be pretty embarrassing, especially when Finn was trying to do _teenage boy_ things. Or like now, when Finn was in nothing but a towel and digging around for something to wear. Burt walked in with a towel clad Kurt and set him on the changing table. Finn jumped and turned around as Burt finished drying Kurt off. 

"Whoa. Sorry, Finn. Didn't see you. I'll take Kurt upstairs and finish dressing him, if you want." Burt offered. 

"Nah, its okay. He's a baby. I think he's more occupied with that towel than with me getting dressed." Finn said. 

"Daddy, is cold." Kurt whined. 

"Alright, baby boy, let's get you dressed." Burt cooed. 

"I'm nakies, like brudder." 

Burt and Finn both laughed as Burt started diapering Kurt. Kurt played with the towel, playing peekaboo with Burt as he pulled the towel over his face and then peeked out from under it. Burt almost felt guilty taking away the towel and ruining Kurt's little game - he had never seen Kurt so happy. Nevertheless, Burt tossed the towel in the dirty clothes bin and set to work dressing Kurt. Burt was thankful that Kurt was relatively still as he slid yellow cloth shorts over his diaper and slipped the duck patterned shirt over Kurt's head. Kurt only began to squirm when Burt put his shoes and socks on and brushed his hair. Luckily, Kurt was now ready to go, so Burt set him in the playpen upstairs and went off to finish packing Kurt's diaper bag. 

Ten minutes later, Carole, Finn, Burt, and Kurt were all situated in the car, and the quartet headed towards McKinley High School. 

****

McKinley was buzzing with activity that afternoon as students swarmed the halls, getting schedules and textbooks and chatting with friends. Finn had been dubbed the Hummel-Hudson tour guide, so he stopped to pick up his schedule and then led the way to the Little building. Kurt was toddling after Finn like a puppy, blanket clutched in his hands as he talked happily to Finn.

"Will I still see you at school?" Kurt asked. 

"Yep. You'll see me everyday." Finn said. 

"Are you-are you going to come see me at lunch?" 

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" 

"Thought I embarrassed you." 

Finn sighed. "I was mad when I said that. I'm sorry I was a jerk to you." 

"Still love me?" 

"To the moon and back, little brother." 

Kurt grinned brightly and hugged Finn, who patted his head. After a few more minutes, they stood in front of a large building with a playground beside it. Burt and Carole caught up with the two boys and Burt lifted Kurt into his arms. Walking through the door, the family was met by a bubbly girl with blonde hair and brown eyes. 

"Hi! I'm Mandy. Right up ahead is a table where this little guy can meet his caregiver and get his schedule. Hi, Finn." The girl, Mandy, said. 

"Oh, uh, hey." Finn said nervously. 

Finn quickly walked ahead with Burt as Carole thanked Mandy for her help. Burt nudged Finn's shoulder knowingly. 

"She got a crush on you?" Burt teased. 

"She won't leave me alone! She's a Masochist I met and I told her I'm a Daddy and she said she digs that and she's annoying." Finn blurted. 

Burt laughed at the look on Finn's face as he picked up Kurt's schedule. Looking at the paper, he saw a familiar name. 

"Schuester? Isn't that the glee club sponsor?" Burt asked. 

"Uh, yeah. He's the choir teacher, too. I think Kurt has choir with me." Finn responded. 

"That's good. Maybe he can try out for glee club this year. We should get Carole and Kurt so we can go meet this Jake Benecorte guy." 

"Is that Kurt's caregiver?" 

"Looks like it." 

Burt and Finn found Carole and Kurt and the four set out to find Mr. Jake Benecorte. They searched every room for the man, but they found him in communal playroom, tidying up the shelves. The man waved and walked over to the group. 

"Hi. I'm Jake Benecorte. You must be the Hummels. Nice to meet you." Jake said. 

Jake looked like a young Daddy - fresh faced, his ebony hair styled perfectly, his green eyes shimmering with happiness. He had a megawatt smile that was infectious. Burt liked him already. Burt held out a hand and was met with Jake's, the two men exchanging a firm handshake. 

"Is this little guy Kurt?" Jake asked. 

"Yes sir. Kurt, say hi, baby." Carole encouraged. 

"Hi, Mr. Benecorte. Nice to meet you." Kurt said softly. 

"Aren't you a sweetheart? I'll be taking care of you while you're at school. Would you like that?" Jake asked. 

Kurt was silent for a moment before nodding. "Yes." 

"We're going to have lots of fun this year. It was nice to meet you, Kurt." 

"Same." 

Jake smiled and said his goodbyes before returning to his work. 

****

Burt had a problem with Mr. Schuester. It wasn't a secret - he hated the man. He thought he was irresponsible and unfair to his students. But Burt was glad Kurt was going to be in choir. Kurt liked singing and it was a great way for him to make new friends. That was the only thing keep Burt calm as he walked into the choir room, toting a sleeping Kurt. Burt had lost Carole and Finn a while ago, so he was on his own.

"Hi, Mr. Hummel. I see you have Kurt with you." Mr. Schuester said. 

"Yep. He's in one of your choir classes this year." Burt said. 

"Is he? I'm glad. He's got a great voice." 

"Yeah, he does. Well, I should get him home to finish out his nap." 

"Of course. I'll see him Monday." 

Burt nodded and quickly walked out of the room. He was not looking forward to dealing with Will Schuester. He headed out to the car and buckled Kurt into his car seat. Turning the key, Burt sat back in the front seat to wait for Carole in Finn in the air conditioned car.


	5. Chapter 5

Finn was actually a little worried about dropping Kurt off at the Little building. Kurt had never been separated from his usual caregivers over the summer - no one knew if Kurt had separation anxiety. If Kurt threw a fit, it was going to be totally embarrassing.

Finn was bouncing Kurt gently as he filled out the sign in sheet. The questions were easy: what time did he wake up, when was his last feeding, any special notes to make his day a little better? Finn quickly finished filling out the form and the woman at the front put a sticker on Kurt's back. She let the two continue forward to the communal playroom. Kurt was playing with Finn's shirt collar while Finn waited for Jake to come take the baby to class. Finn saw Jake through the window and waved. 

"Good morning, Kurt! Did big brother bring you?" Jake asked, clapping his hands and holding out his arms to take Kurt from Finn. 

Kurt happily went to Jake and started showing the man his blanket. Finn passed over Kurt's diaper bag and ruffled Kurt's hair. 

"Bye bye, K. I'll see you at lunch." Finn cooed. 

Kurt's eyes filled with tears and his lip began to quiver. "No, brudder. Don't go away." He whimpered. 

"I'll see you later -" 

"No! I want you to stay! No leave, no leave, no leave!" 

Finn felt his face grow hot. It was just his luck that Kurt would do this right now. Why did Kurt have to be such a little baby? Rachel never cried. She embraced meeting new people. But here Kurt was, crying and screaming and kicking because he was leaving. Jake smiled softly and bounced Kurt. 

"You should go. He'll calm down in a bit. Kurt, let's go have some quiet time." Jake said. 

Finn gratefully turned and started heading to class, almost running into a boy with black hair that was practically cemented to his head by gel in his haste. 

"Sorry, dude." Finn mumbled quickly. 

Finn continued on his way out the door. He wanted to be far away from Kurt while he was throwing his fit. 

It took ten minutes of rocking and singing to calm Kurt down. He was still sniffling when Jake set him in a walker in the playroom so he could roam around. A few other Littles had arrived, all playing together with big kid toys. Kurt blushed - of course he was the baby of the group. Luckily, his self-consciousness was shoved to the back of his mind as he started to play with the toys on the walker. He giggled and shrieked happily as he played, smiling when Jake waved at him. Kurt decided Jake was really fun and awesome and he would never cry when he had to go with him. More and more Littles piled into the room and Kurt suddenly became self-conscious again. He was the only one in a walker. He was wearing diapers and the others were in pull-ups. He felt like he was going to cry. He wished he wasn't so little. Everyone was bigger than him. Jake walked over when Kurt's lip started to wobble dangerously. 

"Someone's having a not so good day so far, huh? Maybe you need a change. Is that it?" Jake asked. 

Kurt hiccuped miserably. He shouldn't be so upset - he wasn't a real baby. He was a Little. Why was this such a big deal in his mind? Jake lifted him from the walker and cradled him, checking his diaper. He smiled, cooing apologetically at Kurt as he laid him on the changing table. Kurt whined until Jake slipped a soother into his mouth. As if he had been doing it his entire life, Jake changed Kurt with careful hands. Once he finished, he put Kurt on his hip. 

"Look, its story time. Let's find a good spot on the story carpet." Jake said, sitting down with Kurt. 

****

Noah hated school. It was a waste of time and all the Littles hated him, so playtime sucked, and they had a lot of playtime. Besides, he was younger than a lot of the other Littles - he tested at around two and a half - so the bigger kids picked on him. So that's why he was alone on the carpet, playing trucks by himself with his stuffed puppy, Buddy. He wasn't willing to admit that he was lonely, though. If these losers didn't want to play with him, it was their loss. Noah looked around the room for a moment, his eyes stopping on a boy he had never seen before. The boy was obviously younger than himself - his caregiver was always hovering over him - and had shiny brunette hair and weird but pretty eyes that were a mixture of blue, green, and gray. The boy was coloring all alone. Intrigued, Noah toddled over and sat down next to the boy. The boy looked at Noah and tensed.

"Can I color, too?" Noah asked. 

"Won't break my crayons?" The boy asked. 

Noah noticed the broken crayons by the boy's picture. "Nope. I'm not a meanie. The big kids are sometimes, though." 

"You're a big kid." 

"Bigger than you, but not lots." 

"I'm Kurt." 

"I'm Noah. Wanna be best friends?" 

Kurt nodded and handed Noah a coloring book. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. 

****

Blaine was nervous to meet the Littles. He knew he was going to be a great Daddy, but he was always nervous when he had to meet Littles. What if he hurt one of them? What if he did something that made one of them cry? He ran through every possible scenario in his mind as his class walked to the communal playroom. He peered through the window at all the Littles gathered on a bright yellow carpet listening to a woman who was singing and clapping her hands. Blaine's Intro to Parenthood teacher led the class into the playroom, and all the Littles ran up, looking so adorably excited that Blaine thought he would die from cuteness. One Little, however, clung to his caregiver, clutching a blanket close to chest and sucking on a soother. All the other Mommies and Daddies had found Littles to play with, so Blaine walked over to the little boy and his caregiver.

"Hey, cutie. What's your name?" Blaine asked the baby softly. 

The little boy hid his face in his caregiver's neck shyly in response and Blaine felt his heart flutter. This boy couldn't possibly get any cuter. Blaine was proven wrong when the boy started playing a barely noticeable game of peekaboo with the caregiver. 

"His name is Kurt. I'm his caregiver, Jake. Sorry, he gets shy around new people." The caregiver, Jake, said. 

"He's adorable. Could I maybe hold him for a bit?" Blaine asked. 

"Sure. Don't worry if he whines a little." 

Jake handed Kurt to Blaine, who put the baby on his hip and bounced him. 

"Hi, Kurt. I'm Blaine. Would you like to be friends?" Blaine asked. 

Kurt hid his face. "Yesh." He mumbled. 

"Great! Would you like to play? Anything you want." 

"Actually, its almost his nap time." Jake said apologetically. 

"Blaine, sing me a song?" Kurt begged. 

"Sure, uh-" 

"Here, come to the nursery. He'll be out like a light in few minutes." Jake said. 

Blaine followed Jake to a dormitory and sat in a rocking chair with Kurt in his lap. He began to sing quietly. 

_Stop your crying, it will be alright Just take my hand, hold it tight_

That was Kurt needed to fall asleep. Blaine gave a content sigh. This felt right - maybe he should do his volunteer work with Kurt. Jake took the sleeping baby and settled him in a crib before smiling at Blaine. 

"Thanks. He's been fighting sleep for about an hour." Jake said. 

"No problem. Any time." Blaine said. 

Blaine meant it. There was something about Kurt - he couldn't place it just yet, but the feeling was there.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The lyrics used are from Phil Collins You'll be in My Heart.


	6. Chapter 6

Lunch was definitely Finn's favorite part of the day. He liked food, he liked not having to figure out parabolas, and he especially liked Rachel. When he saw Rachel skipping over, her brunette hair in pigtails and her pink skirt swishing around her legs, he immediately made a spot for her. Rachel ran up and hugged Finn tightly, sitting in the spot he had saved for her. She proudly held up her new lunch box.

"Look, Finn! I got a new lunch box!" Rachel said. 

"I see that." Finn said with a grin, helping Rachel open her Tinkerbell covered lunch box. 

"Is Kurt going to sit with us?" 

Finn grimaced. "Probably. Why?" 

"I don't like him. He's a big baby." 

"He's nice, Rachel. He's new to this." 

"He plays with Dave Kawofsty. He's weird." 

"Karofsky, sweetheart. And if he sits here, you need to be nice, understood?" 

Rachel pouted. "Yes sir." 

"Good girl." 

"Hi, Finn! Hi!" Noah called, running over to the tall teen. 

"Hey, Puck. Why are you so excited?" Finn asked. 

"I made a new friend!" 

"Noah Puckerman! Don't you run off like that ever again!" A woman barked. 

"Sorry, Miss Allison!" 

The caregiver, Allison, sighed as she came to stand next to Noah at the table. She handed him his lunch box and got him seated before sitting down herself, tucking a napkin into Noah's collar. Noah thanked her and smiled brightly. 

"What's your new friend's name, Noah?" Finn asked. 

"Kurt. He's really little - Allison says he's even younger than me - and he's got teeny tiny fingers, even smaller than Rachel's." Noah explained. 

"Noah, don't speak with your mouth full." Allison chastised gently. 

Noah swallowed his food before speaking. "He's between one and two and he still wears diapers 'cause he's just a little baby, but I like him." 

Finn grinned. "Sounds like you had an exciting morning. Are you ready to go to football seventh period?" He asked. 

Noah nodded, but frowned. "I'm sad that Kurt's not gonna be there. He has PE with the Littles. But his caregiver, Jake, says he's got choir with me next period." 

"We've all got choir together next period. That's going to be lots of fun." 

Noah shrugged, glaring at Rachel. She was mean. Noah hated her. Rachel thought she was so much better than everyone else just because Finn was probably going to be her Daddy after high school. Noah was willing to admit that he was a little jealous of Rachel - Noah wanted a Mommy more than anything, but he especially liked Quinn. He wished she wanted to be his Mommy. Noah continued to eat his lunch in silence. Stupid Rachel, stupid Finn, stupid- 

"Hi, Noah. I eat with you?" Kurt asked softly. 

Noah looked up to see Kurt in Jake's arms, rubbing his eyes. Noah grinned, nodding eagerly. He finally had a Little friend to eat with. Jake spoke quickly with Allison before handing Kurt to her, wandering off to get Kurt a high chair. Kurt waved at Finn excitedly. 

"Hi, brudder! Hi, Rachel!" Kurt exclaimed excitedly. 

"Hey, buddy. How's your day been so far?" Finn asked. 

Kurt blushed and shrugged, suddenly shy. He didn't want Finn to know that he had messed himself or that he had cried like a baby because he had been intimidated by the big kids. Allison ran a gentle hand through Kurt's hair and smiled as Noah began comforting Kurt, offering the younger boy some of his goldfish crackers. Rachel rolled her eyes - Kurt was just a baby. He wasn't cute or interesting, not like her. She would rather play football with Noah than play with Kurt. 

"Kurt had messy pants earlier. He started crying during story time." Rachel said smugly. 

Kurt's lip quivered. Rachel wasn't supposed to tell anyone that. She knew how embarrassed Kurt was. Noah growled. 

"You're a big meanie butt head, Rachel! I hate you!" Noah hissed. 

"Noah, apologize right now! That was rude!" Allison ordered, appalled. 

"She's bein' mean! She wants to make Kurt all full of upset and no one's getting mad at _her_." 

"Well, I'm not her caregiver, I'm yours. Now apologize." 

Noah glared at Rachel. "I'm sorry for name calling." 

"I accept your apology, Noah." Rachel said snottily. 

Silence fell over the table as they ate and Allison waited for Jake to return with Kurt's lunch and highchair. Kurt was starting to get irritable, squirming and whining, his patience wearing thin. Rachel and Noah were having a food war, flicking grapes and fruit snacks at each other in a continuation of their verbal showdown. Finally, Jake came jogging back, highchair and a lunch box in hand. He set up the chair and smiled at Kurt, taking the baby from Allison. After settling Kurt in the highchair, Jake started feeding him forkfuls of buttered noodles with peas and carrots. The rest of lunch went by in semi-comfortable silence. 

Choir was when all hell broke loose. It had started off well enough - Mr. Schuester had walked in and introduced himself before writing a word on the board. Noah was content, sitting beside Quinn and hugging his puppy, Rachel was sitting by Finn, sending glares Noah's way. Kurt was drinking the rest of his lunch time bottle in Jake's lap. Everything was going great until Noah made a comment. 

"Hey, Kurt, you should try out for glee club!" Noah said. 

Then everything started going downhill. Rachel stood up and got right in Noah's face, noses touching as she began to yell. 

"No, he shouldn't! He's a big, stupid baby, just like you, and we don't need anymore bad singers! We've already got Brittany, who can't sing and is really dumb, and Mike, who also _can't sing!_ " Rachel exclaimed. 

Santana growled as she stood. "Control your bitch, Hudson! If she says one more word about Brittany, I'll fuck her up like we do in the Heights!" She threatened. 

"Everyone, sit down! Rachel, apologize. Santana, you know good and well that I don't allow cursing, and Noah, for the love of all things good and holy, stop stirring the pot!" Mr. Schuester reprimanded. 

Allison stood up. "William, I think you're being unfair to Noah. He wasn't stirring the pot, he just asked a question. I thought we encouraged that." She said. 

"I still don't want Kurt in glee. He can't sing - he didn't sing at carpet time-" Rachel sneered. 

"'Cause you mades him cry!" A new voice chimed in. 

Everyone turned to the door to see a blonde boy with shaggy hair walk in, Dave leaning in the door frame behind him. Kurt quickly pushed his bottle away at the sight of Dave, toddling over to the jock and making grabby hands until Dave settled him on his hip. 

"What's up, short stuff?" Dave asked as Kurt hid his face in the crook of his neck. 

"Rachel's mean. Santana is scary." Kurt whimpered. 

"Santana's scary, but nice. And why is Rachel mean?" 

Kurt whispered his reasons into Dave's ear, his eyes teary. He hadn't done a thing to Rachel besides be civil towards her. She had no reason to act the way she did. Dave sighed and set Kurt down before marching over to Finn and slapping him across the face as hard as he possibly could. Finn stood up, standing at his full height, but Dave didn't back down. 

"Asshole. You're an asshole, Hudson. You aren't protecting your little brother from your obnoxious little girlfriend. He needs you to protect him - he's too little to do it himself. Do your fucking job, Finn." Dave growled. 

"They can work it out, Dave. They aren't stupid." Finn barked. 

"God, you are so dense sometimes. Kurt can't defend himself and Rachel has been tearing him down. Kurt, please stop tugging on my shirt." 

Kurt blushed. "Don't be mad at brudder. Not his fault. Not anyone's fault." He said. 

"Kiddo, go finish your bottle. " 

"William, tell your singing outcasts to shut up! Aren't they supposed to love each other and puke rainbows and sunshine?" Sue yelled from the doorway. 

"That's only Kurt. He plays for the pink team." Rachel said snidely. 

"Hey, that wasn't nice!" The blonde kid exclaimed, pulling Rachel's pigtails. 

"Ow ow! Stop it, you idiot!" Rachel screeched. 

"Sam, stop! All of you, stop! You all need to get along. I'm not going to put up with this all year. You guys just wasted a class period fighting. David, you're getting an office referral." Mr. Schuester said, sighing when the bell rang. 

This was going to be his problem group. They were way worse than the third period stoner class.


	7. Chapter 7

Burt loved Kurt, no doubt about it. Kurt was a good kid - quiet, mostly obedient, sweet enough to give someone cavities - but he had his moments where he was a complete _nightmare._ In hindsight, Burt should have known. Telling Kurt that they were going to visit his side of the family never went well - add that on top of a newly Little Kurt and it was a recipe for disaster. 

"No! No diaper! No, no, no! Gotta be big!" Kurt screamed. 

"Kurt Elizabeth! Come on, Ace, give Daddy a break. We're just going for the weekend." Burt soothed. 

"No! Gotta be big! Please Daddy, I don't wanna go little!" 

Burt sighed. "Alright, baby. Go get big boy clothes on." 

Kurt kissed Burt's nose with a grateful smile and hopped off the changing table, heading to his closet to find something to wear. He hated seeing his father's side of the family - they were rude and they all hated him. Kurt often wondered how Burt was related to them. After finding the perfect outfit, Kurt went off to get ready, leaving Burt in the room with Finn. Burt started getting Kurt's diapering things packed into his diaper bag and picking out outfits from Kurt's Little clothes. Finn raised an eyebrow. 

"I thought you were gonna let Kurt be big this weekend." Finn said 

Burt sighed. "I know, but I want to be prepared. This first week of school has been tough and he's starting to regress more and more and if something happens, I don't want to undo all of Kurt's progress." He said. 

Finn nodded. "Need help?" 

"Can you grab me his blanky, his favorite paci - the orange one with the duckies - and, uh, his teething keys. He's starting to cut a set of his Little molars and he'll be miserable without them." 

Finn got up and start to gather the specified items. He also grabbed Kurt's copy of _Goodnight Moon._ The story always calmed Kurt at bedtime and during stressful situations. From what Finn knew about Burt's family, Kurt was going to need all the stress relief he could get. Finn and Burt continued to pack Kurt's things until Carole called for them to load up and head out. 

"I can't sit in my car seat! I'm gonna be big! Big boys don't need car seats!" Kurt wailed miserably, squirming unhappily as Carole and Burt tag teamed getting him buckled up. 

"I know, sweetie, but its the rules and we want our Kurtie Pie safe in the car. Are your teeth bothering you? Do you you want your teethy keys?" Carole cooed, trying to soothe Kurt's cranky and stressed out demeanor. 

"No! I don't wanna be in the car seat! I'm a big boy! I'm big, big, big! No one is listening!" 

"That's because we don't speak cranky, Kurt. No one's gonna be mean to you and I know you can be big. Now, you concentrate on being a good boy and trying to stay dry. This visit will be over and done before you know it." Burt said, kissing Kurt's forehead. 

Kurt sniffled. "Promise?" 

"Promise, Kurt." 

With that, Burt got in the driver's seat and pilled out of the driveway, heading towards the place he considered hell on earth. 

****

"Dad, I need to go to the bathroom." Kurt said.

"Alright, give me a second to find a stop. Can you hold it buddy?" Burt asked, biting his lip. 

"Yes. Not too much longer, but yes." 

Burt let out a breath of relief and drove until he came upon a rest stop. He quickly pulled in and got Kurt out, leading the little - big, Burt didn't need a tantrum - boy to the bathroom and herding him into the handicap stall. Kurt fiddled with the button on his jeans and eventually gave Burt a pleading look until the older man undid the evil fastening device. With lightning fast movements, Kurt shoved down his pants and started to relieve himself. Once he finished, Burt helped his son clean up and fastened his jeans button before helping him wash his hands. Kurt rubbed his eyes tiredly and made grabby hands at Burt. Burt smiled. 

"Nap time for you, Ace." Burt said, patting Kurt's back as he carried the boy back to the car. 

"I went potty all by myself." Kurt yawned. 

"You did. Daddy's very proud of you, Kurt. Such a big boy." 

Kurt smiled at that. After his busy few hours being as big as Finn or Blaine or Dave, Kurt figured a nap was a well deserved treat. 

****

Burt remembered the reason he even came to his parents' house the moment he walked through the door - his mom, Margaret. He had Kurt in tow to make sure the boy made it to the bathroom while Finn and Carole got the bags. Kurt looked back.

"Dad, I think I'll go help with the bags." Kurt said. 

"Oh, no. You go straight to the potty, kiddo. We've got the bags." Burt whispered. 

Kurt nodded before turning his gaze to Margaret, a woman in her late fifties with brunette hair streaked with gray and smile lines on her face. She was the reason Kurt liked to come see his grandparents - his grandma was the best. 

"Hi, Grammy!" Kurt greeted. 

"There's my grandson! How is my little peach?" Margaret asked, hugging Kurt tightly and kissing his cheek. 

"I'm good. I'm sorry to cut this short, but I really need -" 

"Go on. I've got my son to keep me company." 

Burt smiled and hugged his mother as Kurt ran off to the bathroom. He had missed his mom and he couldn't wait for her to meet Carole and Finn - Margaret was going to be ecstatic. She had been waiting almost ten years for Burt to remarry. Carole and Finn made it to the door, Finn packing Kurt's playpen and diaper bag along with his own bag. Margaret raised an eyebrow. This was certainly something. 

"And who is this?" Margaret asked. 

"Oh! Mom, this is Carole, my girlfriend, and her son, Finn." Burt said. 

"Pleasure to meet you, Carole. And you, Finn, are the cutest thing! Your Mommy most be really proud of you." 

"Uh, ma'am, I'm not a Little." Finn said awkwardly. 

"Oh, I'm sorry, Finn. Well, come in, come in. Your father's in the study and Mark and Danielle are in the living room." 

Burt suppressed a groan along with Carole as Margaret gave them a pointed look. His brother, Mark, was a music producer or something, with two annoying children and a gold digging wife. Danielle, Burt's sister, had one daughter - a little spoiled brat - and a husband who was actually a decent being. Burt helped Carole and Finn with the bags before going to find Kurt. He knocked on the bathroom door. 

"Kurt, buddy, are you okay? Do you need help?" Burt asked. 

The door opened slightly to reveal Kurt struggling to button up his pants. Burt couldn't help but chuckle as he squatted down to button Kurt's pants and gave the Little a light swat on the bottom. 

"All good buddy. And still dry! Good job." Burt said. 

Kurt tried not to let his pride show. He needed to act big and getting excited over 'potty training' was as far from big as it got. Kurt sighed as he followed his dad downstairs to face his grandfather, aunt, uncle, and cousins. 

****

Finn thought Margaret was the _bomb._ They had just sat down to a big, home cooked meal of mashed potatoes, vegetables, ham, and cranberry sauce. Finn was used to only getting this type of meal at Thanksgiving - getting it early was like a birthday and Christmas present all rolled into one. Margaret was glad to finally have a grandchild with a healthy appetite, because poor Kurt looked miserable as he pushed a small portion of sweet potatoes around his plate while Kelly, Beth, and Jack all whined about the food.

"So, Burt, when is Kurt gonna start working on joining the football team?" Burt's father, Jim, asked gruffly. 

"Kurt's not one for sports. That's Finn here. Kurt's been doing really well in school though." Burt said vaguely, glaring daggers at his father discreetly. 

"Boy's too fragile. You should get him in something that'll toughen him up. Kid's a pansy." 

"Jim, that's enough. Kurt, honey, you look tired. Maybe you should go lay down." Margaret gritted out. 

"You know, Kurt, we've got a fag making a music video right now and he needs a bump and grind. Little pretty boy like you would get his rocks off." Mark said darkly. 

Burt slammed his hands on the table. "You shut your goddamn mouth, Mark! That is my son and you will not speak to him that way! If you wanna fight, pick on with me. Let's see you be so tough against someone your own size." He growled. 

"Not like he's wrong. Not only did you raise a fag, but you also raised a Little." Danielle sneered. 

The table went quiet for a moment before Kurt jumped up with a gasp. His pants were soaked and there were tears forming in his eyes as the realization that he had wet himself really sank in. Burt was up in an instant, putting a hand on Kurt's back and leading the now sobbing little boy to the bedroom. He felt awful for Kurt - the boy had been trying so hard to hide his alignment - and wanted nothing more than to take Kurt home, but it was too late in the evening for that. Burt gathered Kurt's pajamas, a diaper, and Kurt's bath things before taking the little boy to the bathroom. 

"Daddy, I sorry. So, so sorry. Didn't want no one to know." Kurt hiccuped. 

"Its alright, Ace. Daddy's here - you were such a good boy, Kurt. Let's get you in the bath and ready for bed." Burt said softly. 

Burt had never hated his father and siblings so much in his life. Using that word to describe Kurt - Burt was surprised that Finn didn't fly off the handle - Danielle spitting out 'Little' as if it were an ungodly curse, Mark acting as though his sweet, innocent little boy was some kind of whore. It made Burt's blood boil. Kurt played silently with a rubber duck as Burt bathed him with soothing and gentle motion, using lavender chamomile soap that was making Kurt feel very relaxed. 

"Daddy wet." Kurt giggled, putting his hand on Burt's chest and putting a wet hand print on the man's shirt. 

"Well, I am now, stinker. Let's get you out before you shrivel up into a little Kurt raisin." Burt said, wrapping Kurt in a towel and carrying him to the bedroom. 

Margaret couldn't believe her husband. She knew he could be an asshole with the best of them, but he had promised to keep his fat mouth shut. Burt and Kurt never came over and she missed her grand baby and her son. Not only that, but Burt had brought his girlfriend and most likely soon to be stepson and Jim had made a terrible first impression. 

"Goddamn it, Jim! I asked for one thing! _One thing!_ Burt is our son! Kurt is our grandson! Burt is our only kid who isn't a screw up - he gave us a respectful, sweet boy anyone would proudly call a grandson, and you just treated that poor boy and our son like garbage, " Margaret turned to Carole and Finn, "I'm terribly sorry for this. We aren't being very good hosts." She said. 

"You aren't the problem, Margaret. Thank you for the meal." Carole said politely. 

"You got something to say? Say it." Jim said. 

Finn winced. His mom was about to go off, and no one was going to get her off her soapbox once she got started. Carole cleared her throat and stood calmly. 

"Burn in hell. That is all." Carole said, walking out of the kitchen. 

****

It was about two in the morning when Kurt woke up, stomach growling and diaper soaked and in need of changing. He looked over to see Burt and Carole sleeping soundly and clamped his mouth shut to keep from making any sounds that would wake them. Despite his efforts, a few whimpers escaped him. Before he knew it, he was full blown sobbing, but the noise didn't wake his father. The door suddenly opened and Kurt began to wail. He didn't want anyone to see him like this - he was a mess. He watched the door as someone came in and walked over to his playpen and lean over.

"Its okay, baby. Its just Grammy. Let's get you taken care of. Get you blanky and your paci while Grammy finds your diaper bag." Margaret said. 

Kurt blinked owlishly up at his grandmother, confused by what was going on. Sticking his pacifier in his mouth, Kurt watched to see what would happen next. Once Margaret had found Kurt's diaper bag, she picked Kurt up and carried him to her bedroom. Kurt whimpered when he saw Jim's sleeping form on the bed, but Margaret just set him down and walked into the bathroom to make Kurt a bottle of formula. Kurt snuggled his blanket and waited for her return. 

A few minutes later, Kurt was in Margaret's lap suckling down warm formula with a fresh diaper on. 

Margaret sang gentle lullabies to Kurt as she fed him, smiling as the baby's eyes began to droop and the last of formula drained from the bottle. Putting Kurt to her shoulder, she burped him and rubbed his back until his breathing evened out and she was sure he was asleep. She laid Kurt down between herself and Jim, being sure to pop Kurt's pacifier into his mouth and give him his blanket before she laid down herself and turned out the lights. It had been a long day and it was sure to be a longer one tomorrow - she was going to need all the sleep she could get.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for all the wonderful reviews and kudos! You guys rock!

When Jim woke up the next morning, he felt soft hair tickling his nose. That raised red flags for him, his eyes flying open as he looked down to see who's hair he was sniffing against his will. He found none other that his grandson, Kurt, sleeping soundly as he suckled a pacifier and hugging a blanket to his chest. Jim scowled. Why was Kurt in his bed? He was seventeen years old for God's sake! He was way too old to be crawling into bed with anyone but his girlfriend. 

Jim went to shake Kurt awake when Margaret looked up and glared. 

"You wake this baby, you can sleep on the couch for the next month." She hissed quietly. 

"Margaret, he's practically an adult! And if he's gonna be a sissy, why couldn't he get in bed with Burt and his gal?" Jim complained. 

"He is not a sissy, Jim! He's a Little - just a baby. Burt's exhausted and Kurt was crying and I went and took care of him. I remember when you loved having Kurt around and playing with him." 

"You act like I hate him." 

"Well, you do act like you hate him. He's not your dream grandson, but damn it, Jim, he's a good kid. Pretty soon you'll have Finn to talk to about sports and girls - if he doesn't hate all of us after what happened at dinner - but Kurt's blood." 

"I don't hate him, Mar, I just don't know how to relate to him. He's all rainbows and glitter and shit and I can't help that it pisses me off. He was a cute kid." 

"He's still cute. Jim, I already told you, he's a baby. Just play with him like you used to when he was actually a baby." 

"But Mark and Danielle -" 

"Screw them! I would rather have Kurt's respect than Mark or Danielle's." 

Jim sighed and looked down at Kurt, then back to Margaret. Margaret raised an eyebrow and Jim slowly brought a hand to Kurt's hair and ran his fingers through the brunette's hair. Maybe there was hope to repair his and Kurt's relationship. 

****

When Burt came down around nine A.M., he found his father in the living room with Kurt and almost had a heart attack. After last night, Burt didn't trust his siblings or father around his son, especially not when he was in a regressed state. Burt marched into the living room just in time to see his father uncover his eyes and say 'peekaboo' and hear Kurt shriek with laughter. Burt cleared his throat, making both males look to him.

"Daddy! Grampy is playin'!" Kurt exclaimed brightly. 

Well, those were words Burt never expected out of Kurt's mouth. 

"Uh, morning, son." Jim said awkwardly. 

"Morning. Got your head out of your ass?" Burt asked. 

"Working on it." 

"Thank you." 

Burt took a seat in the recliner and smiled when Kurt crawled over and hugged Burt's legs. Picking the boy up, Burt set Kurt in his lap and cuddled him. Kurt put his thumb in his mouth as he and Burt rocked back and forth and he felt his eyes droop. Kurt whined - it wasn't time for a nap yet. 

"Its alright, Ace. Take a nap." Burt cooed. 

"Wanna play." Kurt yawned. 

"Later, kid. You gotta nap." Jim said. 

Burt nodded towards his dad and gave a small smile. Maybe this visit wouldn't be a total disaster after all.


	9. Chapter 9

"What?! No! You can't give him my solo!" Rachel howled, pointing at Kurt, who was chewing on a teething ring.

Kurt just looked at Rachel and stuck out his tongue, leaning back against Dave. Blaine gave Kurt a light tap on the hand after seeing Kurt's display, despite finding it called for and hilarious. Rachel was overreacting - Kurt had worked hard over the last few weeks for the solo, and Rachel still had a solo and a duet with Finn. 

"Rachel, I am giving Kurt a solo, not your solo. He earned it." Mr. Schuester said calmly. 

"Its not fair! Its not fair, not fair, not fair! He's a stupid baby and he can't even _sing!_ " Rachel screamed. 

"Rachel! Go to the corner!" 

"I didn't even do anything, you big meanie!" 

Finn sighed and picked Rachel up, walking her over to the corner. He had dealt with Rachel's tantrums constantly over the last few days, and he was getting kind of sick of it. He seriously thought she was overreacting. Mr. Schuester clapped his hands loudly, catching the attention of the glee club. 

"Alright, guys! Let's rehearse the first number." Mr. Schuester said. 

Kurt nodded, but didn't get off Dave's lap, continuing to gnaw on his teething ring. Blaine smiled and ran his fingers through Kurt's soft hair. He knew Kurt's gums were really sore and his heart went out to the baby. However, it was time to rehearse and Blaine didn't want Kurt to lose his solo, so Blaine plucked the teething ring out of Kurt's hands and put it away. Kurt whined, making grabby hands to get the toy back. 

"No, its time to rehearse. We're going to rehearse your solo first." Blaine said. 

"O'tay. You, too?" Kurt asked. 

"Me, too. Let's go." 

Blaine and Kurt went onto the stage to rehearse, leaving Dave to watch and Rachel to sulk. 

****

"Good morning, Ace. Are you ready to have some breakfast?" Burt asked, getting Kurt out of his crib and laying him on the changing table.

"'Orning, Daddy. We has peaches? Peaches yummy." Kurt mumbled groggily. 

"Sure, kiddo. We'll have peaches and cottage cheese." 

Kurt yawned and stuck his thumb in his mouth while Burt changed his diaper. Burt replaced Kurt's thumb with a pacifier so he could get Kurt into a school appropriate outfit when he felt a small pain in his chest. He winced, making Kurt reach up and patted Burt's cheek. 

"Daddy hurt?" Kurt asked worriedly. 

"I'm alright, Kurt. Let's go get your peaches, huh?" Burt asked, kissing Kurt's nose. 

Burt put Kurt on his hip as he walked out of the nursery. Kurt frowned. There was something hid dad wasn't telling him, and it was making Kurt anxious. 

****

Kurt was glad he and Noah had started playing together. They protected each other from mean big kids and Noah always played games with Kurt that the other Littles deemed baby games. Right now, Kurt and Noah were playing house and Kurt was cooking them a fabulous three course meal. Noah was the Daddy and Kurt was the Mommy and while Kurt cooked, Noah used a plastic tool set to fix the 'car,' a cardboard box with a hole cut in it.

"Noah, dinner is ready!" Kurt called 

"Thank you, Kurt. It smells pretty." Noah said, looking around before gently kissing Kurt's cheek. 

Kurt giggled and dished up the fake food while Noah sat at the table. Once dinner was ready, Kurt sat down and they pretended to eat. As the two boys ate pretend applesauce, Jake came over and knelt down next to Kurt's chair and ran his fingers through the baby's hair. 

"Kurt, sweetie, we need to talk." Jake said quietly. 

"O'tay." Kurt said, confused. 

Kurt allowed himself to be picked up by Jake and taken into the nursery, where Jake sat in a rocking chair and rocked Kurt gently. 

"Kurt, I have to tell you something very sad. Its going to make you very sad, sweetie, and I'm sorry. Your Daddy - he is in the hospital. He had a heart attack, and the nice doctors are doing all they can to help him, but they aren't sure if he is going to get better." Jake said gently.


	10. Chapter 10

Kurt blinked, not sure if he had heard right. His dad couldn't be in the hospital. Burt was like Superman - he was always big and strong and he was invincible. At least, that's what Kurt had thought. Maybe he had been wrong. Tears filled Kurt's eyes. He didn't want Burt to die. He wanted to just go home and his Daddy be there, waiting to give him a hug and a snack before he went back to the shop. Jake let Kurt cry and soak his scrub top with tears and snot and drool, simply rubbing soothing circles on Kurt's back and whispering comforting nonsense. Jake knew it must have been devastating for Kurt to hear, especially in such a young mindset. Looking at the clock, Jake sighed. It was almost time for Kurt's morning nap, which was going to be a blessing for the baby - he was going to have a massive headache from all of the crying he was doing. Jake found Kurt's blanket and soother and offered them to the boy, smiling when they were quickly taken, the soother going into Kurt's mouth in seconds. Jake rocked in the chair until Kurt's eyes closed and his breathing evened with sleep. Laying Kurt in a crib, Jake tiptoed out of the room. He hoped he would never have to break news like that to anyone ever again. 

****

Kurt was done for by the glee club meeting after school. He was a stressed, worried, crying mess when Jake brought him in. Finn didn't help when he stormed through the door and walked right up to Kurt.

"Why didn't you tell me about Burt? I heard that he was in the hospital from Dave fucking Karofsky! How selfish are you?" Finn ranted. 

Kurt's lip quivered as Finn continued to yell. He hadn't seen Finn or he would have said something. Kurt would have seen him at lunch, but he refused to go, because all the crying had made Kurt's tummy hurt. Now Kurt just felt like a selfish brat for keeping Finn out of the loop. That just made him cry harder - Burt raised him better than that and he would be so upset. 

"Finn, sit down, please." Jake said through gritted teeth. 

"You stay out of this." Finn growled. 

"I will not when you are being a bully." 

The other club members looked over, eyes wide in shock. No one had ever called _Finn_ a bully. Everyone just thought he was a naive marshmallow fluff ball who wouldn't be mean to anyone on purpose. Apparently, Kurt was a pretty easy target at the moment, and that set Blaine and Santana off. 

"Finn, he didn't see you today. You're being a prick - he's not selfish just because he didn't search you out and tell you about his father as soon as he found out." Santana snapped. 

"None of you know what you're talking about! Look, I'm sorry, Kurt, but Burt's the closest thing I've got to a dad. I want to know things." Finn said. 

"Excuses don't make it better, Finn. He's a little boy - you probably just put the fear of God into him. You were still being a bully." Blaine said. 

"I'm with Blaine, man. What you did was cold." Artie added. 

"Kurt?" Sam asked quietly. 

Kurt looked over, wiping his eyes hastily. 

"I'm sorry 'bout your Daddy, 'cause I know you loves him lots. I made you something to make you happy. And I mades your Daddy a card." 

Kurt gave a watery smile when Sam put a macaroni necklace around his neck and handed him a card made with bright blue paper. Kurt was grateful to have such nice, caring friends. Thanking Sam, Kurt stuck his thumb back in his mouth. Sam took the seat next to Kurt and Jake. 

"Noah! NOAH! You get back here!" Allison ordered, running after Noah as he ran into the choir room. 

Noah ignored Allison and ran right up to Kurt, hugging the life out of the smaller boy. He was sad to hear that Kurt's daddy was in the hospital - he really liked Burt, and he knew Kurt loved his daddy more than life itself. Noah had met Burt when he and Kurt had a play date, and he was one of the few people who didn't treat him like a walking violation waiting to happen. Kurt had to be really upset about this. The hug seemed to have the opposite effect Noah had hoped, though - Kurt started to cry. 

"No cry, Kurt - I - I -" Noah was at loss for words, feeling guilty. 

Noah pulled away from the hug, only to have Kurt bring him back for another hug. Kurt was only crying because he had finally gotten a hug - no one had given him a hug all day except Jake. Finn hadn't even hugged him, and all Kurt wanted was to be comforted with touch and not seemingly empty and meaningless words. Sam joined in on the hug after awhile, as did Blaine. Kurt seemed like he never wanted to let go. 

****

"Its okay, baby. He's just...sleeping. You can talk to him." Carole said softly, voice cracking with the promise of tears.

"He's cold, Carole. He needs a blanky." Kurt whispered. 

"Alright, bean. I'll get him a blanket. Finn, can you watch Kurt for a minute?" 

"Sure, Mom." Finn said. 

Carole left the boys and Kurt sat in a chair next to the bed, grabbing Burt's hand tightly. Carole had said it was okay to talk, so that's what Kurt did. He told Burt about playing with Noah and Sam and Blaine and Dave. He told him about the macaroni necklace and read Burt the card Sam had made and told him the story of the Little Red Hen. Anything to fill up the silence in the cold, harsh room. Finn stood in the corner, feeling guilty about what he had said earlier. Kurt hadn't deserved that - he was upset and worried about Burt and Finn had just added to the stress. Finn walked over to Kurt and put a hand on his shoulder. 

"Hey, K." Finn whispered. 

Kurt stiffened. "You wanna talk." He said, getting out of the chair. 

"No, no, no. Come here, Kurt." 

Finn sat in the chair and pulled Kurt into his lap, cuddling the boy close. Kurt wriggled uncomfortably. 

"I'm sorry for getting mad at you, Kurt. You were upset and worried and stressed and I'm not helping. I was angry and I took it out on you." Finn said, running his fingers through Kurt's hair. 

"Is okay, brudder. Kisses?" Kurt asked, kissing Finn's nose. 

Finn smiled - this was the great thing about little Kurt. He was quick to forgive. Carole came back with another blanket and draped it over Burt, smiling at Kurt and Finn. The trio settled in for a few hours of visiting time. 

When Carole said it was time to leave, Kurt started to cry. He didn't want to leave Burt all alone! Burt would be scared all by himself in the hospital. But Carole stood her ground and told Kurt it was time to leave. Kurt pouted, but followed her. Suddenly, Kurt ran back to the room. Carole went after him, stopping in the doorway. She watched as Kurt put his teddy bear on the hospital bed and gave Burt a kiss on the nose. Carole smiled - Kurt really was the sweetest Little she knew.


	11. Chapter 11

Carole hummed softly as she brushed Kurt's hair, chuckling when Kurt tried to cram his entire teething ring in his mouth. At least Kurt wasn't just sitting and crying - that's all he seemed to want to do since Burt had his heart attack. Finn came down to get a jacket and stopped when he saw Kurt. Carefully, he tiptoed back upstairs. There was no way he was going to get caught in another clingy Kurt situation. 

"Finn, are you going somewhere?" Carole asked. 

Finn winced. He was busted. "Uh, I was going to hang out with Rachel." He said. 

"Alright. Take a jacket - its chilly outside." 

"Brudder go bye-bye?" Kurt asked. 

"Yes, bean. You're going to play with Blaine and Dave, remember? They're taking you to the aquarium to see the fishies." 

Finn let out a breath of relief. Carole wasn't going to make him take Kurt with him. Finn was glad - Rachel still wouldn't let go of the fact that he had brought Kurt with them to the park. Grabbing his jacket, Finn quickly tried to make his way out of the room. Carole smirked. She was going to have a little fun with Finn. 

"Aren't you going to tell us bye?" Carole asked, feigning hurt. 

"Bye." Finn said, running up the stairs. 

Carole sighed. "Brother Finn's weird, isn't he?" 

Kurt shrugged. "Sometimes, Mommy." He said absently. 

Carole's eyes widened. Had Kurt just called her Mommy? "What was that, sweetie?" 

Kurt blushed, hiding his face. "Nothing." 

"Its okay, Kurt. You can tell me." 

"I called you Mommy." 

"Is that what you want to call me?" 

Kurt shook his head. "You is mad now." 

"Oh, Kurt, I'm not mad. You can call me that if you want. Don't cry." 

"Promise?" 

"Promise." 

"We eats now?" 

Carole chuckled. "Yes, we can eat now." 

Carole picked Kurt up and carried the little boy up the stairs to eat. 

****

Dave banged on Blaine's front door. Blaine was supposed to meet him at eight! Dave was just adding to the mental checklist of why Blaine was a terrible choice to be Kurt's Daddy. After another five minutes of waiting, Blaine finally answered the door. The teen was impeccably dressed - Dave had to give him that. Blaine gave a small, apologetic smile. He didn't miss Dave's pissed off look.

"I told you I'd be here at eight. Why weren't you ready?" Dave fumed. 

"I got a little caught up. Sorry." Blaine said, blushing bright red. 

Dave blinked. "Oh my God, you _weren't_." 

"So what if I was?" 

"I hope you took a shower, because if you didn't, you're not touching Kurt." 

Blaine rolled his eyes. Dave grated on his nerves sometimes - the guy seemed to hate him for no reason. Blaine had learned that with Dave, nothing he did would be right. Getting into Dave's truck, Blaine took out his phone. He shot a quick text to Wes - a friend from Dalton - before crossing his arms and sitting quietly. He would be damned if he would give Dave more to complain about. 

The drive to Kurt's house could only be described as awkward. There was nothing but silence and quick glances, making for a very uncomfortable experience. The Hummel-Hudson driveway was a saving grace at this point. Dave was the first one to the door, Blaine trotting along behind him, muttering obscenities about Dave. Blaine hated that asshole. 

"Hi, Ms. Hudson. Are you okay?" Dave asked. 

"Just trying to get out the door. You're late." Carole said, slightly vexed. 

"I'm sorry. Running late myself this morning. Where's Kurt?" 

"He's playing in the living room. Try to get something into him, please. He was happy to eat until he actually had to. He refused to eat breakfast and he's a little grumpy. Hello, Blaine." 

"Good morning, Ms. Hudson." Blaine greeted. 

"I'm leaving you boys the car so you don't have to move his car seat. Don't make regret it. Kurt, baby, I'm leaving." 

Kurt suddenly appeared and hugged Carole tightly. Carole kissed the baby's forehead gently and smiled before rushing out to the truck and pulling out of the driveway. Kurt looked up at Dave and Blaine and smiled. 

"Hi, Dave!" Kurt squealed, launching himself into Dave's arms. 

"Hey, kiddo! Are you ready to see some fishies?" Dave asked. 

"Uh-huh. Hi, Blaine! You look likes a prince." Kurt blushed. 

"Aw, thank you, Kurt. Well, we should get you a jacket before we go-" Blaine said, getting cut off by Dave. 

"Which we're going to do while Blaine gets your diaper bag." Dave said, glaring at Blaine. 

"O'tay." Kurt said, making a displeased face. 

Grown ups were so weird. 

****

"Can we see dolphins? Brittany says they is gay sharks. And they is fabulous." Kurt stated, holding both Blaine's and Dave's hands.

"Of course, Kurt. Tell me the rules again, please." Blaine said. 

"No going bye-bye without you or Dave, be a polite dolphin, and no argue when time to go." 

"Good boy. Let's go have some fun!" 

Dave cracked a smile. Hearing Kurt refer to himself as a dolphin was adorable. The trio walked into the aquarium, picking up a map on the way. They decided that dolphins came first - Kurt wouldn't be able to wait. As they walked to the dolphin exhibit, Kurt rattled off facts about the animal, telling Blaine and Dave what dolphins ate and what color they were. It was the happiest they had seen the brunette in days. 

"Look! Can pet!" Kurt exclaimed excitedly, patting one of the dolphins gently. 

"That's great, Kurtie. I bet Dave would love to get you some fish to feed to the dolphins." Blaine said. 

"Actually, baby, Blaine's scared of dolphins." Dave said. 

"Oh no!" Kurt cried. 

"Maybe Blaine should go get the fish and we'll stay here." 

"Maybe you should shove those fish where the sun doesn't shine." Blaine muttered, storming off to get the fish. 

Kurt frowned. "Blaine mad at me?" He asked sadly. 

"No, Kurtie-pie. Blaine just woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Dave said. 

"You pets dolphins with me? 'Cause Blaine scared." 

"Sure, buddy. I think this dolphin likes you." 

Kurt smiled at that. He could have a dolphin friend! How cool would that be? Blaine came back with a little tray of fish and smiled, taking one of the fish between his fingers and tossing it to the dolphin. Kurt's eyes widened - he wanted to try. Blaine gave Kurt a fish and Kurt tossed it to the dolphin, giggling when his aquatic friend clapped it's fins together. Dave smiled. 

"No more fish, buddy. What do you want to see next?" Dave asked. 

"What do you wants to see, Blaine?" Kurt asked. 

"Whatever you want, baby." Blaine said, kissing Kurt's forehead. 

"We see Nemo?" 

"Sounds like a plan." 

Dave glared at Blaine, who gave a triumphant grin. Dave had nothing on him. He was still Kurt's favorite. 

****

"You're a dick, you know that, Anderson?" Dave snapped, dabbing at Kurt's face with a wipe.

"Why? Because I gave him yogurt?" Blaine asked innocently. 

"You know what you did." 

"Is okay that you is scared, Dave. Shark cans be scary." Kurt reassured. 

"You're still an ass, Blaine. God, you're such a brat." 

"Oh, I'm a brat? What about you?" Blaine asked. 

"Don't even say it, Anderson. I will leave your ass here and you can walk home." 

Kurt watched the two boys fight, eyes filling with tears. Why were they mad? Kurt couldn't remember doing anything wrong. Suddenly, Kurt caught sight of the dolphins again. With Blaine and Dave fighting, Kurt could go see the dolphins again - just for a minute, then he would be back before they even noticed he was hone. Kurt got off the bench and carefully walked away, excited about his absolutely flawless plan. After a few minutes, Blaine and Dave turned back to where Kurt had been sitting, only to find it empty. 

"Where is he?! Oh my God, we lost the baby!" Blaine cried. 

"No shit, Sherlock! Come on, we need to find him before he gets hurt!" Dave yelled, grabbing Blaine by the arm.


	12. Chapter 12

Blaine and Dave split up to help the search effort, putting aside their argument. Blaine couldn't believe they had lost Kurt! The baby was usually good about staying close - apparently, he needed to be watched constantly. While Blaine and Dave searched high and low for Kurt, the little boy watched the dolphins swim, taking softly to the sleek creatures. 

"Blaine and Dave fight lots. I love thems, but they no likes each other. It makes me sad when they fight - so I cames here. Dolphins no fight cause they loves each other." Kurt said. 

A dolphin screeched in response, making Kurt smile. Of course the dolphins understood - they were just like him. One of the dolphin trainers came over and knelt beside Kurt, smiling softly. She had been watching the Little for some time, intrigued by the way the dolphins reacted to him. Kurt looked at her with wide eyes before scooting away slightly. He didn't like strangers. 

"Hilda likes you." The woman said. 

"Is dolphin's name?" Kurt asked shyly. 

"Yep. She's been very sad lately - her mama got hurt and had to go to the sick tank." 

"I know how she feels. My Daddy is in the hospital." 

"I'm sorry to hear that. I hope he gets better." 

"I hope so too. And I hope Hilda's mommy gets better." 

"KURT ELIZABETH HUMMEL!" 

Kurt turned, eyes wide, to see Dave storming towards him, looking angrier than he had ever seen him. Getting to his feet, Kurt bowed his head in shame. He had gotten distracted and never made his way back to Dave and Blaine - he had broken the rules. Kurt started to cry. He was going to be in so much trouble. His Daddy and Mommy would be so disappointed. Dave picked Kurt up and took out his phone, calling Blaine and telling him to meet him at the car. He was furious - Kurt had never just run off before. The brunette was usually so well behaved! Now Dave was going to have punish the baby and he wasn't sure if he could do it, especially since Kurt was already crying. 

Blaine, however, could punish Kurt without cracking under the influence of the cartoon eyes and quivering lip and tears. The raven haired teen didn't speak or look at Kurt as he drove home, quietly discussing a proper punishment with Dave. Kurt was still crying, already disgusted with himself. Dave and Blaine probably didn't even love him anymore. Why should they? He was a bad boy and he caused them a lot of trouble. Once Blaine pulled into the Hummel-Hudson driveway, he got Kurt out of his car seat and told him to go stand at the front door while he talked to Dave. 

"I can't believe this shit! What was going through his head? Fuck, Dave, I was so scared. He just - I could never live with myself if something would have happened to him. I should have kept a closer eye on him." Blaine said in frustration, running a hand through his hair. 

"Hey, I was there, too. I'm just as responsible. But Kurt knows not to go off on his own and he needs to be punished. I think a time out and a warning will do it." Dave said. 

"That's not enough. He's stubborn. If we give him a few swats -" 

Dave growled. "We are not going to _spank_ him, Anderson. We don't have permission and it would be cruel. Besides, with the way Kurt's crying, he is probably already really sorry. Time out is good enough." 

"Who died and made you in charge?" 

"Look, I've known Kurt a long time. Way longer than you, prep boy. He punishes himself before his actual punishment and it only makes whatever punishment you give him worse." 

Blaine scowled. "Whatever. You're the better Daddy, right?" 

"Blaine -" 

"Just don't, alright? You deal with Kurt. I need to clear my head." 

With that, Blaine stormed off, leaving Dave to deal with Kurt. Dave had never known he pissed Blaine off so much. 

****

Kurt sat in the corner, sniffling softly as his feet swung back and forth just above the floor. He felt awful, like someone had a grip on his heart and was squeezing it as tightly as possible. He had worried Blaine and Dave and only bad boys did that - by default, Kurt was a bad boy. The guilt was eating away at Kurt quickly as he paid time for his crime, tears still running down his face. After what felt like a decade, Kurt heard a ding and felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, Kurt found Dave looking down at him.

"Time's up, kiddo. Let's talk. Why were you in trouble?" Dave asked. 

Kurt's lip quivered. "I-I went off by myself without yous and Blaine and I was a bad boy." He whimpered. 

"Oh, baby, you're not a bad boy. You made a bad choice - that happens to the best of us. I make bad choices sometimes, Blaine does, too. It was a mistake. Let's not do it again." 

"Yes sir. I'm sorry, Dave." 

"Its alright, sweetheart. Now, I think it's about time for a nap. Upsy daisy, Kurt." 

Dave took Kurt into his arms and went into the kitchen, quickly making Kurt a bottle before heading down to the nursery. Sitting in the rocking chair, Dave cradled and rocked Kurt as he drank his bottle. The bottle didn't last long - Kurt had obviously been famished. Nonetheless, Dave burped the baby and continued to rock him until his breathing evened out with sleep. Dave didn't want to risk waking Kurt, so he just rocked, his cheek resting on the top of Kurt's head. 

****

_Fuck Dave. Fuck Dave and his fucking know-it-all attitude. I can take care of Kurt just as well - if not better - than him. I made one mistake because I've only known Kurt for a goddamn month! It's not like Dave is a saint._ Blaine thought bitterly as he sat on the back porch.

Blaine had always been raised with corporal punishment. His own parents used it on him, even the Dean at Dalton would paddle boys for misbehavior. Of course he had thought it would be a good route to take with Kurt! Blaine sighed, head in his hands. He hadn't wanted to hurt Kurt - he loved the Little to death. He just wanted to put the brunette on the right path. Maybe he should pay more attention in his Intro to Parenthood class. 

"Hey." 

Blaine jumped, turning to see Dave, whose hands were shoved in his pockets. 

"What do you want?" Blaine snapped. 

"Look, I'm sorry. I know I come across as an asshole. I don't hate you - well, not really." Dave said. 

"Then why do you act like it? I hate fighting in front of the baby. I don't hate you, either. I just hate your attitude." 

"I'm jealous of you. I've liked Kurt for as long as I could remember and all I wanted was to be his Daddy. Then you waltz in and - and you took that from me. That's why I was such an ass to you." 

Blaine had never thought of that. "I - I'm sorry, I guess. I would be pissed too. But I like him, too. So...may the best Daddy win? And can we try to be friends?" 

"Deal." 

Dave and Blaine shook hands, sealing the deal.


	13. Chapter 13

"Daddy!" Kurt squealed, climbing onto the bed beside Burt.

"Hey there, Ace. How was school?" Burt rasped. 

"Good. Not as good as bein' at home. I'm happy you're better now." 

"So am I, Kurt. I missed you." 

Kurt rested his head on Burt's chest, sucking his thumb contently. He had missed Burt and he had been scared that his Daddy was never going to come home. Burt's hand came to rest on the top of Kurt's head. When he had regained consciousness, Kurt was the first person he saw, the Little holding his hand as if it would give him the secrets of the universe. Burt couldn't wait until he was off bed rest so he could play with Kurt and spend time with Carole and Finn again. 

"Knock, knock. Kurt, sweetie, why don't you go play? Let Daddy rest." Carole said, coming into the room with a tray in her hands. 

"It's fine, love. He's being a good boy." Burt said. 

"Is okay, Daddy. You eats so you gets better. Mommy, Finn home?" Kurt asked. 

"He's in your room." Carole said. 

Kurt nodded and ran off towards his and Finn's shared room. Carole and Burt smiled. They were glad Finn and Kurt were getting along - this week. Carole pressed her lips to Burt's. 

"I love you." She murmured. 

"I love you more." Burt replied. 

Kurt had convinced Finn to play blocks with him, despite the fact that he had been playing Call of Duty. Right now, the were building a house around one of Kurt's baby dolls, Kurt alternating between building and chewing on his teething keys. He couldn't wait until he finally had his Little molars - then he would be constantly shoving things in his mouth and he wouldn't get the rashes from drool on his chin anymore. There was a comfortable silence in the room as the two boys simply played together. It was nice not having to talk - Finn was so used to playing with Rachel, who always tried to talk his ear off. 

"Brudder?" Kurt asked softly. 

"What's up, K?" Finn asked. 

"Do you think Mommy and Daddy are gonna get married?" 

Finn's head spot up to look at Kurt, who suddenly looked very scared. He hadn't meant to upset Finn. Finn sighed and patted his lap, which Kurt crawled into. Finn wrapped his arms around Kurt, cheek resting on the smaller teen's head. He wasn't sure how to answer the question - he knew Burt and Carole loved each other and they got along really well, but that didn't mean they would get married. So, he settled on answering a question with a question. 

"Do you want them to get married?" Finn asked. 

Kurt nodded. "Daddy's real happy with Mommy. I want him and Mommy to be happy." He said. 

"Maybe they will. Probably someday." 

Kurt nodded and curled up, putting his thumb in his mouth. Finn was big and cuddly and Kurt was sleepy, so it was easy for Kurt to close his eyes and drift off, dreaming about Burt and Carole getting married. 

****

"I think the sun should have glitter. So is sparkly like the real sun!" Kurt exclaimed excitedly.

"Good idea, Kurt! Yous is smart." Noah said, high-fiving Kurt. 

They were learning about nature in class and Kurt had learned that the Sun was actually a star. So, of course, stars needed glitter. It was perfectly logical. Kurt and Noah put some glue on their paper and started sprinkling glitter over it. Suddenly, a hand knocked their tube of glitter over, sending it flying everywhere. Kurt whimpered as he heard laughing. His and Noah's picture was ruined. 

"Stupid baby. The sun _doesn't sparkle._ And you smell." Rachel laughed. 

"You're a meanie, Rachel! I bet you're smelling yourself!" Noah yelled. 

The two continued their squabble until their caretakers ran over, pulling them apart to keep the fight from getting physical. Kurt was crying softly as Jake picked him up and started patting his back. Allison and Rachel's caregiver, Michael, started trying to get to the root of the problem. 

"Okay, kiddos, what's wrong? Why are we fighting?" Michael asked. 

"Kurt and Noah were bein' dummies! The sun doesn't have glitter!" Rachel snapped. 

"Rachel knocked over our glitter _and_ she was makin' fun of Kurt _and_ she made messy pants!" Noah howled. 

"Well, it sounds like you own each other an apology." Allison said. 

"No way!" Noah and Rachel argued, sticking their tongues out at each other. 

"Well, then I guess you'll apologize after you both spend some time on the naughty stool. But before we do that, someone smells like she needs some new underwear." Michael said, picking Rachel up. 

"No! I didn't make a messy! No, no, no!" Rachel screamed. 

Noah smirked. Rachel more than deserved that. Noah followed Allison to the corner, where she sat him in the naughty spot for ten whole minutes. Ten! It was unfair. Kurt wasn't getting timeout - he was getting a bottle and a nap. Then again, Kurt hadn't been part of the fight. Noah sighed. Stupid naughty spot. 

****

"Alright, Kurt, tell me what this is." The therapist said, pointing to a bottle.

"A bottle." Kurt said confidently. 

"Kurt, you haven't been working on your speech skills." 

Kurt sunk down in his seat, embarrassed. It wasn't his fault regression therapy was so difficult for him. He had missed a crucial year when he had cheated on his first placement test. Speech was especially hard for Kurt - speaking like a Little just didn't come naturally. 

Let's try again. What's this?" The therapist asked. 

"A-A baba?" Kurt asked. 

"Good job, Kurt! Let's do another one." 

The therapist handed Kurt pacifier and asked him to tell her what it was. 

"A soothy!" Kurt exclaimed happily. 

"Correct. Well, we're out of time, Kurt. I'll see you next week, alright?" The therapist asked. 

Kurt nodded and hopped off his chair, walking out of the office and going to Carole and Finn. Carole smiled and stood up. 

"Finn, take your brother to the car please. I need to speak with the therapist for a moment." Carole said, walking into the office. 

Finn nodded and grabbed Kurt's hand, taking the younger boy out of the office. Carole sat with Kurt's therapist. The woman sized Carole up, an eyebrow raised. This wasn't Kurt's father, who usually picked Kurt up. 

"Can I help you?" The therapist asked. 

"Yes. I'm Kurt's guardian, Carole Hudson. I was just curious about his progress." Carole said. 

"Well, as far as diapering goes, he's right on track. His speech isn't regressing properly and his mannerisms are getting there. I would suggest working on those things with him." 

"Oh, of course. Anything else?" 

"He tells me a lot about his friends. Most of the Littles he plays with are mentally older than him. I would suggest getting him with younger Littles." 

"Okay. Well, thank you for the tips. I better get going before Kurt gets too antsy." 

Carole quickly picked up her purse, making her way out. The therapist was so cold and stoic - not someone people would consider good with Littles. But she wasn't wrong about Kurt. He needed to be worked with at home on his regression and with Burt in the hospital, it went on the back burner. Carole vowed that from now on, she was going to work harder to help Kurt in every way possible.


	14. Chapter 14

It was cold season at McKinley High, and Kurt was becoming more and more paranoid with each passing day. He _could not_ get sick. He was too fabulous to have a red, runny nose and bags under his eyes. Not only that, but cold season was the time that Sadists and Masters became even more hateful than before. Kurt already walked around with a target on his back; being sick was like sprinkling glitter on it and wrapping it in Christmas lights. 

Carole rubbed Kurt's back as she tried to get the baby to eat even a spoonful of his breakfast. He was lost in his own little world, it seemed, and if the look on his face face was anything to go by, he was not happy about whatever was on his mind. Burt sat at the table, glad to be off of bed rest and - not so subtly - hiding his laughter. Kurt almost never gave Carole this many problems while eating and today he was clamping his mouth shut and turning his head away, acting like a petulant toddler. To be honest, it was refreshing to see Kurt act like a baby. Maybe the therapist was finally getting somewhere. 

With a sigh, Carole turned to Burt, glaring at the man. This was becoming ridiculous - Kurt loved lemon yogurt and Cheerios and she had ten minutes to feed him before he needed to get dressed to be out the door in time for school. 

"If you think it's so funny, you get over here and feed him." Carole snapped, exasperated. 

"Love, I'm not laughing at you, I just think Kurt's being funny." Burt said. 

"Either way. Please feed him while I get his clothes ready?" 

"Of course, Carole. Sorry." 

Burt took the spoon from Carole and sat in front of Kurt, who still refused to open his mouth. He wasn't eating that! It could be contaminated or the sugar could _weaken_ his immune system and he wasn't letting that happen, not today. Burt dipped the spoon in the yogurt and Cheerio mixture, bringing the spoon to Kurt's lips. The brunette shook his head. He wouldn't eat it. _He wouldn't._

"Aw, come on, Ace. Don't give us a hard time this morning. Uh-oh, I think there's an airplane coming. Where's he going to land?" Burt asked, twirling the spoon like a plane and taking it towards Kurt's mouth. 

Kurt began to giggle. His Daddy was so funny! However, he still wasn't going to eat. It could make him sick or - 

_SLURP!_

Burt slipped the spoon into Kurt's open mouth with a triumphant look. Kurt spluttered, looking at his dad, betrayal in his eyes. 

"Sorry, Kurt, but you've gotta eat. We don't want your tummy to get growly, do we?" Burt cooed. 

"No, daddy! Want happy tummy!" Kurt cried. 

"Then be a good boy and finish breakfast." 

"O'tay, Daddy. Sorry." 

"You're alright, Ace, but I'd like it if you apologized to Carole for being stubborn. I think you hurt her feelings." 

"Oh no! Didn't want to hurt Mommy. I eat, Daddy, then apologize." 

Burt grinned. "I know you will. Open up." 

Kurt did as told, swallowing every bite with a smile. By the time Carole came back to get him, the bowl was empty and Burt was watching Kurt drink a bottle of juice, smiling. It was impressive, she had to admit, that Burt could get Kurt to do just about anything. The little boy would probably even give up designer scarves for his father. 

"Ready to get dressed, bean?" Carole asked, unbuckling Kurt from his highchair. 

Kurt nodded. "I'm sorry I hurts your feelings, Mommy. Didn't mean to." He said softly. 

"It's okay, Kurt. Mommy was having a bit of a cranky morning, too." 

Kurt smiled and clung to Carole as she picked him up and carried him to the nursery. 

****

"Eeeeewww!" Rachel screeched, hiding behind one the the play tables. 

Noah rolled his eyes, walking over to Kurt to show him his newest find. The garden by the playground was certainly filled with all sorts of surprises, including Twisty. Twisty was the name of Noah's new - creepy and crawly - best friend, who was an earthworm. They were supposedly good for plants, so Noah was going to let Twisty live in the bean plant he had planted in class last week. Now he was going to have the most beans and Rachel was going to be super jealous. 

Kurt was in his walker, whining softly as he tried to move around. His feet barely touched the ground and he was getting nowhere. Luckily, the toys on it had captured his attention and he had taken to tapping out a tune using the light up buttons. Noah sprinted over to Kurt, Twisty hidden in his hands. Kurt was going to love him, Noah just knew it. 

"Kurt, Kurt, look! I founds it in the gawden." Noah said proudly, holding out the worm for Kurt to see. 

Kurt giggled as the worm crawled around in Noah's hand. It kind of looked like a noddle, if noodles were pink and moved. Suddenly, Rachel ran up to Noah and pushed him from behind, screaming in disgust. How dare he show her a _worm?_ Boys were so gross. 

The worm fell out of Noah's hand and down Kurt's onesie, making Kurt scream. Looking at a bug was just fine. Touching it? That was a big no. Jake ran over to see what the commotion was about, giving Noah a questioning look. Rachel smirked. She was glad Noah was finally getting in trouble. 

"What's going on here? Kurt, sweetheart, what's wrong?" Jake cooed, lifting Kurt out of the walker and cradling him. 

"Kinda," Noah lowered his voice, "A worm in him shirt." 

"What was that, Noah?" 

Kurt's screaming was growing progressively louder. "A worm in his shirt!" Noah yelled. 

Jake groaned. Noah, Kurt, and Rachel got into more trouble than any Littles he had ever seen. Calling Allison over, Jake gave her a rundown of the situation before taking Kurt to the nursery to get changed. The baby was in a full blown fit at this point, screaming, crying, and flailing with everything he had. Jake couldn't blame him - he'd be pissed if he had a worm down his shirt, too, especially if he were wearing a onesie. Laying Kurt on a changing table, Jake began to undo the crotch snaps of Kurt's onesie, cooing at the brunette as he pulled the worm out from under the fabric and wrapped it in a baby wipe. Kurt was finally starting to calm down, much to Jake's surprise. He had expected at least another ten minutes of tears. 

"That's it, Kurt. You're alright. No more worms." Jake promised. 

Kurt nodded before coughing. Resting his head on Jake's shoulder, Kurt groaned. This was turning out to be a terrible day. 

****

Kurt nervously watched Rachel prance around the choir room, her voice filling the space with a melody that even Kurt had to admit was beautiful. There was no way he was going to edge her out for the solo. It didn't matter how much he wanted to sing _Watch What Happens_ ; it didn't matter that _Newsies_ was one of his top ten favorite musicals. He wasn't going to be as good as Rachel. He never was. Bringing his knees to his chest, Kurt began to cry silently, wincing at the pain in his throat as he did so. 

"Stop the music!" Rachel commanded, making Brad roll his eyes. 

"Rachel, you can't just _stop_ in the middle of a performance." Mr. Schuester groaned. 

"I can when Kurt is being a big crybaby during my song. No one can even 'ppreciate my song because Kurt is so loud!" 

Kurt looked up to see everyone's eyes on him. He hadn't meant to ruin Rachel's performance - he was just upset. Maybe he should stop being upset. Blaine picked Kurt up and let the boy snuggle into his chest. 

"I've got him. Go on, Rachel." Blaine said. 

Rachel let out an annoyed 'humph' before motioning for Brad to start the music up again. Her performance went off without a hitch and at the end, she gave a curtsy and sauntered back to her seat, shooting a glare at Kurt. 

"Alright, Kurt. You're up." Mr. Schuester said, clapping his hands. 

Kurt slid off of Blaine's lap and made his way to the front of the room. Everyone stared at him with rapt attention as Brad began to play. Kurt felt his muscles tense. He couldn't do this. He wouldn't get the solo anyway; what was the point? Regardless, he began to sing, wincing at the hoarseness of his voice and the way his throat burned. Rachel began to giggle as Kurt's voice continued to dim until it was nothing but a whisper. Kurt looked at Blaine with teary eyes. 

"Okay, I think we're done for the day. We'll pick this up later, when Kurt's feeling better. Finn, can you take Rachel back to class?" Mr. Schuester asked. 

Finn nodded as Blaine took Kurt into his arms and cooed at the baby. He knew what it felt like to be sick - it sucked, and for Kurt, it probably seemed like the end of the world. 

"Let's get you to the nursery for a bottle and a nap. It'll help a little bit." Blaine said softly. 

Kurt didn't much care what happened at this point. He knew he shouldn't have eaten that yogurt. Now everything was screwed up.


	15. Chapter 15

Burt felt a tug in his heart as he watched the pediatrician examine Kurt, whose eyes were filled with tears. The brunette had endured a tough week; it hurt too much to talk, but Kurt continued to until he woke up completely unable to speak one morning. So, naturally, Burt set up a doctor's appointment to find out what was wrong. He didn't think Kurt would get so upset. The doctor - a sweet Indian woman of about fifty named Dr. Bhatt - gently pressed her stethoscope to Kurt's chest, making the baby squirm. She cooed softly in Hindi to Kurt. She wasn't used to seeing the boy in such distress. He was typically very happy. Taking her stethoscope off, Dr. Bhatt jotted some notes down on Kurt's file.

"So, what's wrong with Kurt? Does he need some antibiotics or anything?" Burt asked, grabbing his son's onesie so he could begin dressing him. 

Dr. Bhatt smiled. "Kurt has laryngitis. Nothing too serious. Only time can really help him get over it. But warm tea could help soothe his throat, as well as cold items, like popsicles." She said. 

"You hear that, Ace? You're going to get lots of popsicles!" 

Kurt perked up a bit at that. Maybe Burt would get him lemon and blueberry popsicles. Something good had to come out of being sick, right? Kurt sputtered as Burt pulled a onesie over his head, whining as calloused hand snapped the crotch buttons. It was way too hot for clothes. Normally, Kurt would have been embarrassed to just sit in a diaper, but his fever had made him uncomfortably warm. Burt chuckled as Kurt pulled at his onesie. He figured he'd have to give Kurt some naked time at home. 

"Baby aspirin will do for the fever. And watch for diaper rashes because of the diarrhea. Otherwise, he is not contagious and free to return to school." Dr. Bhatt said. 

"That's great. Thanks, Doc. Kurt, say bye to Dr. Bhatt." Burt said. 

Kurt opened his mouth to try and say goodbye, but all that came out was a string of unintelligible noises that had Kurt slapping a hand over his mouth. Dr. Bhatt smiled sympathetically and patted Kurt's knee. She wouldn't admit it - due to Kurt's embarrassment - but she found the noises adorable. Baby talk was one thing that always made her smile. Burt picked Kurt up and let the boy rest his head on his shoulder, rubbing his back soothingly. 

"It's alright, Kurt. I think we better get on, Doc. Thanks again." Burt said. 

"Yes, yes. Just bring him back if the need arises." Dr. Bhatt said. 

Burt nodded, desperate to get out the door. He could feel a meltdown coming on; Kurt hadn't had one yet, really, but surely knowing that he could only make noises wasn't going to go over very well. At least there wouldn't be any screaming. Burt thanked every God he didn't believe in for small miracles. 

Kurt's face dampened with tears as Burt carried him out the door, unable to hold them back. Why did he have to get laryngitis? Why not Rachel, who could go a few days without a voice? She was bigger than him - she could write and communicate without speaking, unlike Kurt. No one would see her as more of a baby if she couldn't talk. Kurt tried to push the thoughts out of his head. He didn't actually want Rachel to get sick. 

Burt deposited Kurt into his carseat and buckled him in, cooing softly in an attempt to dry Kurt's tears. He hated seeing Kurt so upset. However, Burt had no idea why Kurt was crying, or what had him worked up. Plus, a new problem had arisen - Kurt couldn't efficiently communicate verbally anymore. The next week or so was going to be nightmarish for everyone involved. 

"Hey, buddy. Don't be sad. You'll be all better in a week or two. Then we'll sing all the showtunes you want. I promise." Burt said, kissing Kurt's forehead. 

Kurt made a happy noise at that, followed by a few gurgles and indecipherable sounds. Burt held back a smile. It was kind of cute, hearing Kurt sound so little. Not that he'd say that to his son's face, of course. 

****

Circle time was no fun without someone to sing with. Noah learned that fairly quickly in his day without Kurt. In fact, nothing at all was enjoyable. Playtime was lonely, learning was boring - not that it wasn't usually, but it was more so with no one to help - and Glee was a train wreck. Sam tried to play with Noah and make him feel better with macaroni pictures, but nothing seemed to work on the boy. Noah really missed Kurt. 

Sam missed Kurt, too, though. The brunette was always fun to play with and he was nice, unlike a lot of the other Littles. Sam would know; he was a new kid, and only around three in his headspace. 

Sam watched Noah talk to Allison, eyes filled with sympathy. Noah's own eyes were watering dangerously, tears inevitable, as Allison picked him up and rubbed his back. She took him into the nursery and shut the door behind her. Such a gesture could only mean one thing. Noah had had an accident. 

"Sam, kiddo, are you okay?" Sam's caregiver, Heather, asked. 

"Noah has acc'dent?" Sam asked softly. 

"Yes, Sam. But he is very sad and embarrassed, so we aren't going to tell anybody. He's just not having a good day." 

"'Cause Kurt is bye-bye?" 

Heather chuckled softly. "Yes, because Kurt isn't here. Now, don't worry about that. Miss Allison has Noah all taken care of." 

"Pwomise?" 

"I promise." 

Sam smiled as Heather walked off, resuming making his Mega-Block city. Maybe when Noah was done being changed, he would want to help. Or knock it all down. Noah tended to like being destructive. About ten minutes later, Noah and Allison reemerged from the nursery, Noah sucking his thumb, eyes nervously darting around the room as if he were afraid to get caught. Allison gave Noah a gentle pat on the bottom and pushed him towards the play area. Sam grinned and motioned for the other boy to come over. Noah began to shuffle over after a few moments, plopping down on the floor beside Sam with a soft yelp. 

"Hi, Noah. Is o'tay now? Yous can has all the gween blocks, 'cause theys you're favowite. Or can push ower." Sam babbled. 

Noah stayed quiet, taking the offered blocks without removing his thumb from his mouth. Then, he began to build. Sam decided to keep quiet about the thumb sucking as to not embarrass Noah any further, despite Heather saying that fingers were gross. The duo played in silence until it was once again time for circle play, which Noah sneered at. 

"Noah, it's time to sit on the carpet. We're going to sing and read a story. You love circle time." Allison cooed. 

"Only wif Kurt." Noah whispered. 

"Kurt will be back tomorrow, sweetheart. He just had to go to the doctor." 

Noah's eyes began to water. "But I's miss him lots. Want him." 

"I know, Noah. But Kurt would probably like it if you had a good day today. So, let's go to the carpet." 

Noah pondered the truthfulness of Allison's for a few minutes. Kurt was always a good boy, and he would definitely go to circle time without complaint. Rising to his feet, Noah walked over to the circle time rug and sat down, crossing his arms over his chest. No one said he had to be happy about it. 

Sam smiled at Noah from across the circle, groaning when Rachel rolled her eyes at him. Rachel just had to be the center of attention. She whispered something to the girl next to her, causing the other girl to giggle maliciously. 

"Uh-oh, I thinks Noah made pee-pees again!" The girl teased, causing the other Littles to laugh. 

Noah's eyes grew wide as he stammered out his response. "I-I no made pee-pee. Didn't Miss Allison, pwomise!" 

Allison shushed Noah gently. "I know, little man. You use the potty like a big boy. Gemma, that was not very nice. Apologize to Noah." Allison said sternly. 

Gemma huffed. "Sorry, Noah." 

"At least he's not a big baby like Kurt. Kurt messes his diapees and uses pacis." Rachel laughed. 

"Shut up, Rachel! Kurt is weally nice and he may make messies in his pants but at weast he a good fwend!" Noah snapped. 

A boy laughed. "Noah likes babies! Noah likes babies! That means Noah's a baby, too!" 

"I _am not_ a baby and Kurt's not either!" 

"Oh, pwease! Kurt's the biggest baby in the entire uniwerse!" Rachel scoffed, "I bets he's not here 'cause he can't even weave his Daddy 'cause he a scaredy cat!" 

Something inside Noah snapped at that comment. He was sick of Rachel always terrorizing him and Kurt and acting like she was perfect. Suddenly, Noah lunged at her, grabbing a handful of her hair and pulling it roughly. Rachel screeched and slapped at Noah's face, leaving a red hand print at the impact site. The two Littles continued their scuffle, scratching and kicking and hitting as they rolled around on the floor. All the caregivers crowded around Rachel and Noah, making attempts to break up the fight. It was useless - they just needed to work it out. 

Finally, Noah rolled away from Rachel and ran to Allison. He already knew he was in trouble and he hoped it wasn't enough to send him back to juvenile detention. Allison picked Noah up and cradled him. She knew she needed to send him to time-out and call his mother, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. Rachel's caregiver, Michael, was well aware of Noah's anger issues. He should have put a stop to Rachel's behavior. Noah wasn't really the one at fault. Who could blame him for getting angry after being teased? 

Rachel, however, hoped Noah got expelled. That boy was a troublemaker. All he did was mess everything up. Plus, he hung out with Kurt, who always took up all of Finn's time and made everybody coo over him because he was 'cute' and 'so little.' _She_ was supposed to be the star. Rachel Berry was always the star! Not Noah, not Kurt, her. No one was going to take that away. 

"I wanna pwess charges! My lawyers will hear about this!" Rachel screamed. 

Noah sniffled in response, hiding his face in Allison's neck. There was no doubt about it. He was in huge trouble, and he was going to go to jail again. Away from his mom and his sister, away from school and his handful of friends - all because he couldn't control his anger. A disappointment was what he was. 

Michael picked Rachel up, sternly chastising her for the fight and her threat. She kicked and struggled in his arms, still spewing threats of lawyers and expulsion. An injustice had been committed and Rachel would not let Noah get away with it. 

"I wanna call my Daddies! Right now!" Rachel demanded. 

****

Dave nervously put his phone to his ear, his heart rate skyrocketing with each ring. All he wanted to do was check on Kurt and make sure his little buddy was okay. That wasn't wrong, was it? He was being a concerned friend. Nothing suspicious about that. Besides, he had called the Hudson-Hummel home on numerous occasions to speak to Finn. This was no different. 

After the sixth ring, Dave contemplated hanging up. Finn was probably out with Rachel, Burt was probably at the shop, and Carole most likely had her hands full with Kurt. They didn't have time for Dave, of all people. He was just that guy that babysat Kurt every once in a while and maybe had a teeny, tiny crush on him. If anything, he was minuscule in comparison to Blaine, who had made Kurt's house his second home and had Disney movie marathons with the baby. 

"Uh, hello? Anyone there? Dave, you on?" Finn asked through the phone. 

Dave snapped out of his thoughts, turning his attention to the phone. "Yeah, bro. Sorry, I was thinking." He said. 

"I was wondering why I could smell smoke all the way at my house." 

Dave snorted. "Ha ha, very funny, Hudson. I was calling to check on Kurt." 

"He's doing good, man. He can go back to school tomorrow, but he can't talk, like, at all. All he makes are gurgles and whines and baby noises and stuff. Mom's been using that dumb squeaky voice to talk to him all day." 

"Dude, she probably just thinks it's cute. Girls always use that voice when they think something is cute." 

"Yeah, hut this is freaking torture. I mean, she's been doing Kurt's therapy exercises with him and she claps every time she says the word 'little' because she says it'll teach him to think of being a Little as a good thing. Listen." 

Dave could vaguely hear Carole encouraging Kurt to walk towards her in the voice Finn had described. Kurt whimpered and she cooed softly, calling Kurt her 'good little bean' and telling him that he was getting better. And true to Finn's word, Carole clapped after saying 'little bean'. 

"Holy crap. Kurt must be going crazy. He hates that kind of stuff." Dave said. 

"Nah. I think he actually kind of likes it. He pretends that he doesn't, but he totally does. Blaine does it to him, too, when he babysits. I think Mom tells him to." Finn explained. 

"Of course Blaine does." 

"Man, are you still mad at Blaine? He's a cool dude. I think if Kurt wasn't something you both wanted, you'd be good friends." 

"Say that when some other dude is trying to take Rachel from you." 

"Whatever. Hey, I have to go. I'll see you at practice tomorrow, okay?" 

"Yeah. Bye, Finn." 

"Bye." 

Dave tossed his cell phone to the side after hanging up, flopping onto his bed with a groan. Even _Finn_ like Blaine more than him. Was anybody on his side? Dave picked up his English book. He might as well do homework if he had no plans.

**Author's Note:**

> So, I know I'm working on a billion other things, but I needed to post this. R&R, if you would like. I would certainly appreciate it. :D Thanks for reading!


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